


The keeper of her dragon heart

by Dreamystranger



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Animagus, Dragons, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Fred Weasley Lives, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, Love, Love Confessions, Romance, Slow Burn, Smut, Weasley family in the last chapter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:20:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 50,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24926062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamystranger/pseuds/Dreamystranger
Summary: After the war, Sharon Apley has reached a point in her life at which she longs for a change. Unfortunately, it occurs differently than expected when an espionage mission during her last week as an auror goes completely wrong. As a prisoner of her animagus form, she ends up in the care of a dragon keeper in the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary. Will Charlie Weasley recognise the woman in the dragon?
Relationships: Charlie Weasley/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 70
Kudos: 188





	1. A momentous mission

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, everyone! 💛  
> About a year ago I started this story and now I can happily announce that I have finished it. From today on every Friday a new chapter of a total of 12 will be posted. Both the German and the English version.
> 
> I would like to express my infinite gratitude to [moonfairy13](https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonfairy13/pseuds/moonfairy13) for proofreading the English version, without whose presence this story would not exist - maybe I should start calling her moonangel. 😉 If you don't know her stories yet, you should definitely check them out.
> 
> Finally, I just want to say: My Hufflepuff heart wishes you a lot of fun reading and hopes that Sharon and Charlie's love story will bring you a lot of joy. 😊

* * *

She should never have accepted this mission.

Sharon flinched when a metallic sound rang out, echoing from all directions. Two voices spoke; their tones contrasting. With her eyes closed, she tried to concentrate on the content, but only recognised isolated words.

It was stuffy. A smell of straw and sweat soaked the air, settling like a weight on her lungs upon inhalation.

"…pleased… and now… splendid specimen."

Footsteps drew nearer. One person, whose face was mostly covered, knocked against the bars of her cage with a ring decorated hand.

"A beauty." Deep voice. No dialect. "She'll bring us a lot of money."

His companion, who was shorter in stature, made a dissatisfied noise.

"You sure that guy's gonna pay?" Nervous hands kneaded each other. "Maybe we'd better keep her and wait for a better deal. One scale alone is worth a fortune."

The man with the rings crouched down in front of the cage. Had it not been for the barrier spells and that she had been stunned, Sharon would have lunged at him in that instant. Thus she had to limit herself to a growl, coming from deep within. Her body vibrated.

"Careful, don't get too close."

"Nah, don't get your knickers in a twist. This beast can't move a muscle, and even if…"

Sharon narrowed her eyes to slits and wished herself far away. Every other place seemed better than the present one. She heard the scratching and hissing in the surrounding area and remembered how everything had been fine just a few days ago.

The man laughed at her; diabolically.

"…you'll be a good girl, won't you?"

"Let me think about this for a second… No."

Sharon glanced at the wall clock as if it were executioner and saviour at the same time. Two hours till the end of work. Before that, she couldn't leave the Ministry - and she would have loved to do so right now.

Since the early morning hours, all sorts of tasks had been trickling into the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Hearings that needed to be scheduled or rescheduled, aurors who submitted scrawly reports, a new draft law on the use of the engorgement charm, now undergoing its fifth rectification…

At some point the witch had lost track of the countless messages that landed on her desk in the form of colourful paper planes.

_Will this day never end?_

This question crossed her mind for the umpteenth time when not even a minute ago her office door had swung open, revealing her best friend and colleague Andrea. No hello. No question about her condition. Just the proposal of dressing up after work and exploring muggle London by night. Instantly, Sharon had declined. But to no avail.

Her friend - today wearing a perm and pink lip gloss - bent over the desk in her direction, almost knocking over the quill holder in the process.

"Aw, come on." Andrea put on a pout. "It'll be fun for sure. I'll even lend you the green dress that goes so well with your eyes. Think of it as some sort of farewell party for you."

"A party that consists only of the two of us?" Sharon asked, sorting the paper airplanes by colour. "Wow, I didn't know I was that popular."

Andrea pressed a hand on her chest - a fake expression of hurt flickered across her face.

"Ouch, so I'm not good enough for you?" she whined. "Well, lucky me to find that out before you abandon me in this place."

Shaking her head, Sharon waved her wand and made three opened paper planes, which she had already taken care of, disappear. Another wave brought the most urgent memos to the front.

"You know I've been so busy since…"

"…you took over your family's clinic. I know." Andrea's facial expression became stern. "Nonetheless, it's important to think about your well-being and take a night off sometimes. Merlin, you aren't a machine after all!"

Sharon smiled at the last sentence, that a pure blood would certainly have failed to understand. But just like her bubbly friend, one half of her descended from a parent without any magic. Their joint conversations about popular things in the muggle world were one of the reasons why the two of them had befriended each other so quickly at the beginning of their auror careers.

"I'll have plenty of time later to take it easy, all right? As soon as all the paperwork is done and the clinic can run without me. Maybe I'll travel, catch up on my reading, practice my healing magic…"

"Don't tell me the dragon has been tamed?"

Upon this question, Sharon narrowed her eyes; barely noticeable.

"That joke never gets old, does it?" she sighed and leaned back for a moment. "No - let's just say that from now on my fire will burn on a low flame."

Before the witch could reach for a red paper plane with the seal of the Ministry department - importance level 1 - it was slapped on the table by another hand.

"Sharon."

The witch looked up when her name was so unexpectedly spoken.

"I know I've asked this before, but…" Andrea took a deep breath. "…are you really sure about your decision?"

Sharon lowered her eyes. As a matter of fact, she had been confronted with this question so many times by now that the answer slipped from her lips as if she had rehearsed it.

"Chasing evil wizards and witches, fighting crime… I just can't do it anymore. After the war…"

She left the sentence unfinished. Unpleasant images flashed in front of her mind's eye. Images of dark marks and smoke and blood and death. Most of the time she could suppress them, but every now and then they still managed to fight their way to the foreground.

Sharon shook herself back to reality, trying to put on a reassuring smile when she noticed the worry on Andrea's face.

"You know the rest," she said, pulling the paper plane out from underneath the other woman's hand. But just as she was about to unfold it, someone knocked at her office door, which still stood open. The two witches adjusted their gazes downwards, where a shy-looking house-elf waited.

"Tuffy sincerely apologises for the interruption." His voice resembled the cheeping of a bird. "But Tuffy has been instructed to inform Sharon Apley that her presence is requested in the executive office."

They thanked him with a smile. When the house-elf had disappeared, Sharon stood up and used her wand to magically tighten the bun, into which she had tamed her long, dark hair this morning. She rubbed her forehead - too hard.

As soon as the two witches had left the office, Sharon picked up the beginning of their conversation.

"Why do you want to go out today anyway? Didn't you just say the other day-"

"I've sworn off both men and women," Andrea interrupted with an affirmative nod. "At the moment I'm only focusing on myself…" She made a hand movement in Sharon's direction. "…and friends who forget to think about themselves."

"But I don't do that."

Sharon's backtalk made her friend shake her head.

"Sweetie, the middle button of your blouse isn't buttoned up and your desk looks like the Heathrow airport for paper planes," Andrea replied dryly, showing a crooked smile when the other witch hectically put her outfit in order. "Not to mention the expired sandwich I found in the department fridge the other day, which I wouldn't even feed to a bundimun and-"

"All right, I get it!"

Sharon sighed heavily. Truth be told, she certainly could use some time off. And the prospect of a girls' night out accompanied by a few drinks with far too long names sounded increasingly tempting.

Inwardly, the witch went through her to-do list and eventually made a decision.

"Is there a place in particular you'd like to visit tonight?"

Andrea's enthusiastic squeal, following this indirect confirmation, could most likely be heard two hallways further on.

"Thank Helga! You won't regret this!"

_I've never regretted anything so much…_

Sharon tried to move any of her muscles, but failed to achieve more than a barely visible twitch. Even breathing proved itself to be difficult.

A simple spy mission - that's all it was supposed to be. Get in and get out again. But then everything changed.

Sharon's partner, who had infiltrated her in the smuggler ring, was exposed and killed. An injection of an unknown substance had instantly stolen her consciousness. Metallic bars had been the first thing she encountered after her indefinite sleep. Metallic bars, hooded figures and countless other cages, imprisoning magical creatures from all countries of origin. Demiguises, acromantulas, mooncalfs, hippogriffs, unicorns… and now in appearance an Antipodean opaleye as well.

Never before had the witch regretted her animagus power as much as at that moment. All she could do now was to wait until a convenient opportunity for a retransformation presented itself. Her wand was gone, but even without it, she hopefully would be able to summon her patronus with enough concentration to call for help.

Perhaps even the stunning would wear off in the foreseeable future. The bars weren't too close together. With a bit of luck, she could squeeze through as a human and thus escape.

Sharon listened intently. No one had come around for a while. Even the sounds of the other trapped creatures had lessened in intensity over time.

 _Okay, my chance_ , she thought and delved into herself to regain her real shape. But nothing happened. Confused, the witch paused. Scales. Claws. Wings. No change. _By all the magic, what the…_

Sharon tried it again. One more time. And one more. Eventually a deep desperation spread through her, causing her breathing to quicken.

_Why can't I change back?!_

"You wanted to see me?"

"Ah, Apley, the woman of the hour."

Mr. Dail, a stout man with sideburns and a brown suit, waved her in and to the chair in front of him. He hadn't been head of the department very long. Only since the end of the war.

"Sit down, sit down."

With rising vigilance, Sharon followed the request and took a seat.

"It's almost time, hm? You'll be sorely missed. No one likes to let a capable auror go," the older man said, waving his wand to summon a file from a cabinet on his left.

"Thank you, I appreciate that," Sharon smiled. "Um, if you don't mind me asking… Why exactly am I the woman of the hour?"

She regretted the question as soon as she noticed the glint in the eyes of her boss. His finger tapped on the tabletop next to the file he had just summoned.

"The illegal trade with magical creatures."

It didn't take the witch long to put two and two together. Arms crossed, brow furrowed, she leaned back. Almost like a petulant schoolchild who was given an extra exercise as a punishment.

"Oh no, absolutely not," she snapped, but her objection fell on deaf ears.

"You are the best choice for the job," Mr. Dail said. "The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures is breathing down my neck, insisting that they need reinforcement. Somehow one of them got your file. They've explicitly asked for you regarding the espionage from the inside."

"Wow, really?" she asked, pretending to be surprised. "I wonder why."

The wizard showed no emotion in the face of her sarcasm and Sharon shook her head. Of course, something like this had to happen during her last week of work.

"You know I'll be gone soon. Such tasks always take much longer than you initially expect," the witch argued, adding a throwaway gesture. "Just take the person you would have chosen if I had already left."

The face of her boss reflected a deep dissatisfaction. Muttering, he pulled a handkerchief from his vest pocket and wiped his neck with it.

"You are the best choice," he repeated with emphasis. "But I can understand that this order comes at a bad time so close to your resignation. So here is my suggestion…"

The wizard leaned forward and under his weight the office chair emitted an ominous creaking sound. Obviously, it had been magically mended one time too often. Where exactly did all the taxes go?

"Finish this last assignment to everyone's satisfaction…" he began, lowering his voice slightly. "…and I will use my contacts to make your family's medical facility one of the premier addresses for the delivery of healing ingredients."

Sharon froze. That offer sounded good. Even more than good.

In the healing profession, often everything depended on the freshness of the ingredients and how quickly one could get access to them in the event of an emergency. Her parents used to have difficulties with the suppliers, because other larger institutions such as the St. Mungo's Hospital, but various shops specialised in magical potions as well, were always given priority.

Sharon bit her lower lip. When it took her much longer than usual to respond, a smile settled on the lips of her superior. Both knew he had won.

"What is your answer?"

Screams. Explosions.

Sharon opened her eyes and for a moment the world whirled like a carousel before she could see clearly again.

A unicorn ran past her cage, on whose back a demiguise rode. Briefly, the witch thought herself to be still asleep. But then she realised that people were fighting nearby. Curses flew through the air like colourful thunderbolts. A few metres away, another explosion occurred.

Sharon felt a throbbing in her head and wondered how much time had passed since her last awakening. As soon as she made the attempt to move, she fell back to the ground; moaning. Pain. Her legs burned as if hot iron was being pressed against them.

"Hey, over here!"

A man had stopped in front of her cage. His wand tip, illuminated by Lumos, blinded her temporarily. He was young. In his early to mid-twenties with brown, friendly eyes.

"You've got to be kidding me," he muttered and then shouted, "Roxy, you won't believe this!"

Another person rushed to his side. Medium height. Pixie haircut.

"What's wrong? Some of the smugglers got away. Maybe we should-"

He placed his free hand on the witch's cheek and turned her head in a way that made her look inside the cage. Shocked, she stumbled backwards.

"Galloping gargoyles! A dragon, too?!" Roxy cursed. "As if the other creatures weren't enough already! Where are we supposed to take this one?"

Thoughtfully, the wizard stroked his chin. Different options flew like snitches through his brain.

"The nearest reserve is in Scotland, but the MacFusty clan only looks after the Hebridean blacks," he said after a moment. "So the best solution would be Wales."

But this idea was immediately rejected.

"I have heard that they've been struggling with a lack of space recently," the witch explained, walking along the cage's edge. "Last spring must have been a mass birth of greens. Looks like they were pretty fertile."

"I see… And Romania?"

Roxy laughed as if he had cracked a joke.

"Are you serious?" she asked. "That's not exactly around the corner. Or do I have to summon a world map for you to prove it first?"

In response to her teasing reaction Brian playfully pushed his hip into her side.

"Very funny. Unlike you, I enjoyed some geography lessons at least." 

The two smiled at each other and it took them a second to remember the precarious situation they were currently facing. Roxy pursed her lips.

"But Romania, Brian? Really?" she asked uncertainly. "That's going to be a long journey with a dragon."

The wizard put on a crooked grin, thinking that this wouldn't be the first time in his life to dare such an undertaking.

A few years ago, he had helped a former school friend by smuggling a Norwegian ridgeback out of Hogwarts in order to accommodate said creature within the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary. At least since then Brian knew: Charlie Weasley would never turn his back on a dragon in need of a new home. Romania was perfect.

"I'm positive. Or do you have a better idea?"

The witch remained silent and eventually shook her head in defeat.

"Then it's decided," he said, digging around in his bag to fetch a vial containing an unknown liquid. Sharon snorted in horror when it was filled into a syringe. Not again.

She wished she could have prevented it, but then she felt the sting and it was too late.

"Don't worry," Brian whispered. Unknowing and comforting in equal measure. "Everything will be all right."

Sharon's eyelids fluttered. First quickly, then more and more slowly as the potion took effect. Spots crawled into her field of vision like black beetles, asking each other to dance and getting bigger with each spin. Finally darkness and words that pulled her like an anchor into the sea of sleep.

"You are safe now."

Her boss looked at her expectantly and repeated his question with one word.

"Deal?"

She should have refused.

"Deal."


	2. The Romanian Dragon Sanctuary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for following this story! I hope you enjoy the second chapter! 💛

When Charlie Weasley got up that morning, he instinctively felt that something was going to happen. Something life-changing. He couldn't explain it. It was merely a gut feeling, which refused to let go of him - and in his profession as a dragon keeper he had learned early on that it was better to trust it. 

In the distance the first dragon roar of the day rang out. The Peruvian vipertooths were early risers and a much more effective alarm clock than the rooster on a farm. Charlie closed his eyes - listened for a moment. Even after so many years on the reserve, these sounds were still able to send pleasant shivers down his spine.

The wizard followed his usual morning routine, had a generous breakfast, put on his fireproof workwear, and finally left his hut. The dragon sounds had not subsided, causing Charlie to smile.

_Looks like somebody's hungry._

Whistling, the man went along the forest path, which would take him to his station and the daily morning meeting with his team. Apparition was not possible in order to control the arrival and departure from the reserve. But that didn't bother Charlie.

He liked the physical activity and the fresh morning air, all of which banished the remnants of sleep. Furthermore, he got the chance to study his surroundings, which constantly offered something new - the traces of forest animals like wild boars and deer, bird nests in the upper branches of the trees, but also magical creatures like doxies and graphorns in the high mountain areas.

Charlie loved it.

The Romanian Dragon Sanctuary was the largest of its kind in the world and could proudly claim to be unrivalled in terms of quantity and variety of its creatures. To ensure the dragons had enough space to roam freely, it stretched for several kilometres and therefore required multiple ranger stations, with one team bearing the responsibility for each.

By the time Charlie reached his destination, two of his workmates were already sitting at the meeting table.

"Good morning! The vipertooths seem to be in a particularly good mood today," Jolina greeted. "Pedro must watch out to look less appetizing than the sheep and cows." 

Snorting, the witch tossed her head back and pinched her eyelids together while doing so. Charlie smiled and noticed that their other teammate had the same reaction.

Aaron, who had been the team's healer for two years by now and the lover of the witch next to him for almost as long, expressed a deep calmness as usual. The couple represented the perfect example of opposites attracting each other. Not only in character, but also in appearance.

For instance, Aaron, who came from America, always appeared very pale with his translucent skin and blonde hair, while sitting alongside his beloved, whose Egyptian roots made her a black-haired beauty with sun-kissed skin.

"Oh, come on, the vipertooths have taste, you know," Charlie grinned and sat down across from them. Another person entered the room, balancing a tray with a few cups of coffee in their hands.

"Another word of that sort and I'll put you on the menu," Pedro grumbled and handed out the cups, to which they greedily stretched out their hands. "Red weasel, dragon-keeper style, well flambéed."

The Spanish dragon keeper was the oldest of the group by a couple of years and a veritable giant who towered over his fellow human beings quite a bit. Even bigger were his heart and fiery temper.

When everyone sipped on their preferred coffee, he pulled a stack of cards out of his trouser pocket and placed it on the tabletop before sitting down as well.

Aaron raised one of his eyebrows.

"I don't think we'll have time for a game," he remarked in a low voice. "The boss will be here soon."

"Oh, that?"

Pedro signaled his refusal and launched into an explanation.

"My son has taken a liking to fake magic as of late because it doesn't suit his book that he won't get his wand until he's 11."

Sighing, he divided the deck of cards into two halves.

"Now he wants me to teach him how a non-magical person performs magic." With rough movements he shoved the sheets together as if he wanted to knead dough. "I wonder when he will realise that his _padre_ isn't capable of everything."

"Very soon, when I see how you are shuffling cards," Jolina pointed out and snatched them from him to demonstrate a correct shuffling process.

The professional was immediately recognisable. Overlapping each other only by a few centimetres, the two stacks came together fluttering. This procedure was repeated twice. When the witch was done, something glowed in her eyes.

"Who wants to draw?" she asked innocently. "It's no tarot, but I'm not choosy."

Refusing, Pedro shook his head.

"Oh no, spare me this fortune-telling," he said and hid his hands under the table as if fearing that she would grab them otherwise. Her lips pursed, Jolina looked at her partner. Aaron smiled.

"I already know everything I need to know, love."

The witch nodded in resignation, as if she had expected this answer beforehand. Only one possibility remained.

Charlie felt her gaze on him as he, seemingly lost in thought, counted the grooves of the tabletop. Three. Five. Eight. Eventually he sighed. 

"You are aware that I dropped divination during my time at school?"

"Well, your loss. Not everybody has the inner eye."

Jolina made the cards fly from one hand to the other, giving them the shape of a white snake. Over and over again. When she repeated it for the fifth time, the wizard surrendered for her sake.

"All right, but the next round of firewhisky is on you."

Smiling in view of her victory, Jolina put the cards on the table and, with a quick movement of her hand, fanned them out into a semicircle.

"It's a deal," she grinned. "Three cards, please. Past, present and future. In this order."

Charlie took a central one and uncovered it. Her role as a fortune teller fully embraced, the witch leaned forward. The hands folded as if in prayer.

"Six of Clubs," she recognised more or less disappointed. "Not surprising. Your birth card, if I am not mistaken. Maybe I should have asked a more precise question…"

He responded to her discontent with a crooked grin.

"Well, at least you are not wrong. After all, I was born sometime in the past."

"Joker."

Pedro and Aaron laughed at the exchange between the two. Impatiently, the witch pointed at the remaining cards. Charlie understood the silent request and selected one further to the right. Barely done, Jolina frowned.

"The Ace of Diamonds. A change is on the horizon."

Charlie swallowed. There it was again. This strange gut feeling that he could not explain. His sudden rigidity didn't go unnoticed by the sharpened senses of the other dragon keepers.

"Don't worry. It's a positive card," Jolina reassured. "Probably something trivial like a salary increase or another good message."

Her sentence had hardly come to an end, when stomping footsteps sounded, steadily increasing in volume. _Boom_. _Boom_. _Boom_. A man with a stocky presence squeezed himself through the door frame.

" _Bună dimineața._ "

Ciprian, the head of the Dragon Sanctuary and a native Romanian, had the remarkable gift of becoming the centre of a room as soon as he entered it. After his morning greeting had been reciprocated, the man sat down at the head of the table with a groan. The seat that invisibly bore his name at every station on the reserve.

"Playing cards? So this is what happens when I'm late." He peered into Pedro's cup. "Well, at least you don't drink firewhisky as well."

The wizard handed out the pending task lists and went through the usual, long-winded security protocol, while Jolina hurriedly swept up the cards on the table.

"By the way, I got an interesting message earlier," he said at the end, reaching into his coat pocket. "So listen up."

A letter came to light, which was waved for additional accentuation of his words. Jolina sought Charlie's gaze, tapped the Ace of Diamonds that now rested on top of the stack, and wiggled her eyebrows. The redhead sighed inwardly.

"Apparently, a smuggling ring has recently been excavated that conducted the illegal trade with all kinds of magical creatures. The smaller and larger sort."

Pedro raised his cup to his nose and inhaled the rich scent of the coffee.

"Let me guess… dragon-size?" he asked with a hidden smile.

The boss passed the letter around so that everyone could read it and nodded affirmatively.

"You've guessed it. We will get an addition soon. Only one dragon, but that's something, anyway."

Jolina, who got her hands on the letter first, audibly gasped for air while reading it.

"Our first opaleye!" she shouted with delight and Pedro snatched the parchment from her. His eyes flew across the lines of black ink. A sudden grin.

"Are you sure this isn't a love letter to Charles? Some kind of marriage proposal with a dragon instead of a ring?" He laughed. "Not a bad strategy, I must say!"

Irritated, the redhead bent towards him and took the letter. The reason for the quip was quickly found.

"Brian," Charlie said with joy when he read the name of his former classmate and the few lines addressed to him personally. The two of them could look back on a career as Quidditch Captains of their respective school teams - Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. There had always been a friendly rivalry between them.

"The same Brian who helped you with Norberta back then?" Aaron asked and received a confirming nod.

Ciprian leaned back in his chair, stroking his graying full beard.

"It seems that your friend expects you to take care of the opaleye." His eyes sparkled. "It's just a pity he's not entitled to make this decision. We have to stay fair."

Clearing his throat, he straightened himself and the team already knew what would happen next.

"Who wants to take responsibility for our new addition?"

Pedro and Charlie jumped up at the same time.

"Me!" they shouted with one voice. In their zeal, both had knocked over their chairs, which hit the ground with a thump. Aaron touched Jolina's arm as she tried to reach for her wand. Using a nonverbal spell, he undid the mess.

Charlie fixated Pedro with narrowed eyes.

"You've just recently taken on the vipertooths. Those keep you on your toes enough already."

"And you? One can find you everywhere as it is," the older wizard replied. "Do you even have time for another dragon?

"I can assure you that-"

A throat-clearing interrupted the verbal exchange of blows between the two. Ciprian folded the letter, which had found its way back into his possession, and put it in his coat pocket.

"Settle this amongst yourselves," he grumbled. "The opaleye will arrive sometime this evening. By then you must have made up your minds."

Ponderously, he stood up.

"Now if you'll excuse me. There are two more teams waiting for their morning meeting."

As soon as the door behind their boss had closed, the atmosphere seemed to charge itself with a crackling tension.

The two dragon keepers stared at each other. Pedro built himself up to demonstrate his already considerable height. Thereupon Charlie flexed his arm muscles, which declared him the clear winner when it came to strength.

"Once you're done competing like dragon males during mating season…" Jolina started and got up, too. "…we can sort this out the good old-fashioned way - with a competition."

Charlie opened his mouth, but was cut short.

"We are definitely not going to fly for it," Pedro said, one finger raised. "That gives an unfair advantage to certain people in this room."

The witch muffled a giggle behind her hand.

"I hope that you're not still upset because I kicked your ass last time."

" _¡De ninguna manera!_ Of course not!"

But the way he pressed his lips together belied his words. A tangle of jibes, arguments and denials came to life, which only subsided when an audible cough was heard.

Aaron avoided direct eye contact, reached for the deck of cards still resting on the table and shuffled it.

"There is a simple solution," he said in his role as a mediator. "Everyone draws a card and the highest value wins. A game of pure chance. Nothing could be fairer."

After his suggestion, Jolina gave him a kiss on the cheek - short and innocent. Afterwards her mouth remained whispering at his ear. The blonde blushed - clearly not innocent.

"Quick and easy. A wonderful idea, darling," she smiled eventually.

When the witch gave the other two a challenging look, they inevitably surrendered. Jolina knew how to use her eyes to enforce her will. There weren't many female dragon keepers on the reserve. To be exact, you could count them on one hand. Assertiveness was an important keyword.

Charlie reacted first. Seemingly nonchalantly, he drew the top card from the deck and uncovered it. The Nine of Hearts. Then it was Pedro's turn. First silence, then a groan. The Five of Diamonds.

"Congratulations, Char." Aaron nodded in his direction. "Your dragon."

Filled with joy by his chance victory, Charlie grinned like a child who received a gift at Christmas. A new dragon. On top of that, a species he had never worked with before. Although the dragon keeper thought that he had the most important facts about opaleyes in his head, it certainly wouldn't hurt to refresh his knowledge just in case.

After the name Weasley had been put on the list of responsibilities for an unnamed opaleye - internally Charlie already went through names although he didn't even know the gender yet - the team reverted to the usual morning meeting. About a quarter of an hour later the most important details for the day had been clarified.

Dragon cries in the distance. Pedro jerked up. 

"What time is it?" he urged. Without waiting for an answer, he conjured a magical dial - and cursed in Spanish.

" _¡Maldita sea!_ They'll devour me!"

The dragon keeper rushed to the door, ran back again to drink the rest of his coffee, and finally disappeared for real.

"My dragons shall be asleep for a little while longer. I'd better make sure he doesn't actually become part of the menu," Charlie said with an apologetic smile and was immediately on his heels.

Barely done, Jolina put her hands on her hips.

"These two! Give them a dragon and everything else is forgotten!"

Shaking her head, she turned to her partner, who was already waving his wand to let the coffee cups float into the adjoining room with the kitchen corner. Another spell ensured that they would wash themselves automatically. Jolina sighed. She loved this man.

"Pedro forgot his cards," Aaron remarked. The witch leaned over the table with a nod. Suddenly she had an idea that prompted her to take a closer look at Charlie's last card.

_The Nine of Hearts as the future card. Good omen. But in what sense?_

Frowning, she lifted the card and, to her surprise, noticed that there was another one hanging on its back. And not just any.

"This unsuspecting lucky beggar."

Absorbed in her own thoughts, the witch pondered the meaning of the card in combination with the other one. Grinning, she stowed the deck in her jacket pocket and went to Aaron, who was already waiting for her at the door. A small jump sneaked into her walk.

The Queen of Hearts of all things.

That evening, Charlie's team gathered on the reserve's main square, which served as the linchpin for all important concerns. Here one could find buildings such as the apparation house, where people could travel from the outside to the inside and vice versa, the owlery for national and international mail plus the headquarters of the reserve, where some witches and wizards like Ciprian indulged in bureaucracy.

As their waiting time approached the full hour, the latter's impatience was soon written all over his face. No dragon far and wide.

"Punctuality is increasingly losing its value," he grumbled. "Back in my day, our asses were literally lit on fire whenever we weren't there in time. Maybe we should bring that back - what do you think?"

The others were spared from giving him an answer. Charlie, who had been carrying a deep anticipation in his belly for hours, saw a movement on the horizon. A large shadow accompanied by a few smaller ones. At first barely visible, then increasingly clear.

"Here they come!"

It was a group of Romanian wizards and witches who had received the dragon at the national border and were now carrying it through the protective barriers into the reserve. Every time anew it presented an impressive sight how thanks to several broomsticks and floating spells a gigantic cage could be transported.

In case of an emergency, the waiting people raised their wands when the important cargo was lowered to them shortly afterwards.

"Isn't that Stefanu?" Jolina said, while shading her eyes with one hand. Pedro followed her gaze.

" _Sí_ , you are right."

He blew his husband a kiss, who answered by flying a loop before disappearing with the rest of the border team.

"Come to think of it, I was asked to tell you that you are all invited to dinner soon. Maybe the weekend after next, but I'll let you know in time."

"Ohhh, well, I won't say no to that," Jolina smiled and turned to the others. "Did you hear that? Romanian-Spanish home cooking at…"

The rest of her words seeped away like rainwater into a gully when she caught the scene in front of her. Charlie, Aaron and Ciprian all wore the same face. A grimace, distorted by horror. The witch followed their line of vision to the inside of the cage - and gasped loudly for air.

"Oh my… how terrible…!"

Jolina pressed a fist against her mouth and leaned against her life partner when he appeared at her side to calm her down.

Charlie approached the cage in which the awaited opaleye was deeply slumbering.

 _A female_ , his trained eye now recognised up close. Meticulously, he examined the damage done by the smugglers. Numerous scales had been ripped out of her skin. The resulting notches had become infected due to a lack of cleaning. At least the wings showed no injuries, but this could be linked to the fact that someone did not want to deprive her of the ability to fly.

Anger burned in Charlie's eyes at those responsible. A fury so deep that it could not have been banished from his voice, even if he had wanted to.

"She won't be able to walk, let alone stand up…" he said, reaping nods of agreement from all sides. "At least not for a few weeks."

The others also came closer after the first shock.

"She is so small. But clearly fully grown," Pedro remarked. "How unusual. Opaleyes normally get a lot bigger, don't they?"

He looked at Ciprian, who was known for working with every dragon species during his years of training.

"Who knows how long she has been in captivity or whatever they have given her to eat. Her size could be the result of numerous causes, such as inadequate care or a habitat that was too small," the wizard said, although he didn't seem completely convinced. There was a question in his eyes, which he kept to himself.

While the others quietly shared their observations and opinions, Charlie got on his knees and, after a final safety check, stretched his right arm through the bars. Lovingly, he stroked the part of a wing he could reach the easiest. Her skin was warm - a good sign.

"I'll take care of you from now on," the wizard whispered and pressed his forehead against the cool metal of a bar. "There will be no suffering for you from here on out."

When the wing beneath his fingers twitched, he instinctively had to smile.

"Welcome home."


	3. Dragon keeper Weasley

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the third chapter. Their first real meeting is one of my favourite moments. What do you think? :D

_I'm still a dragon._

That was Sharon's first thought when she slowly regained consciousness, feeling the heaviness of her limbs. She definitely wouldn't recommend sleeping in one's animagus form. Although there were witches and wizards who did this out of habit. Sharon did not belong to them.

There was barely anything more unwieldy than the body of a dragon. Too much mass. Too little freedom of movement. On top of that, wings which seemed to develop a life of their own at night and pushed everything down like a load.

The witch tried the retransformation. To no avail. Yet again.

_That's not good. Not at all._

For a long moment, Sharon didn't dare open her eyes. There was the troubling thought that her rescue from the smuggling ring had only been a figment of her imagination. A pipe dream, although it would have made more sense to dream of the retransformation and her warm bed.

Hesitantly, the witch risked a look, but everything seemed blurry. Hardly anyone knew this, but dragons, like reptiles and some birds, had a third eyelid that worked like a pair of safety glasses. A fact that Sharon herself had only come to know after becoming an animagus.

As soon as the eyelid had disappeared, her surroundings gradually began to become focused. No bars - positive. An enclosure - negative.

_Heck, I can't believe it. This definitely falls among my top three worst mornings._

Hesitantly, Sharon stretched her wings - a blessing. But when she made an attempt to stand up, a violent pain struck her legs. It burned - almost as if she had stepped into a bed of scorching hot needles.

"Damn…" Sharon growled, grinding her teeth. "What the…"

The witch looked down at herself - and became mute. The sight of her dragon form, now clearly visible in daylight, was simply too much. Naturally, she had known that these monsters had stolen scales from her during the anaesthesia. She had known and still…

Sharon took a deep breath to suppress an imminent shock. A few years ago this would not have been possible. It was the work as an auror that had taught her how to deal with hopeless situations. To keep a cool head in the face of such.

The witch could still remember quite well the strong emotional outbursts she had struggled with in her youth. Whether grief, anger or even joy - everything had been carried out in an enhanced way. So it was reasonable to suppose that this was why her animagus form had turned out to be a dragon - a big body for big emotions.

Inwardly, Sharon counted to ten. A deep breath followed, then a second and yet another. The air was evenly absorbed and released by her huge lungs. After a while she could finally think clearly again.

_All right. Let's go through the facts._

She studied her surroundings intently. The enclosure wasn't particularly spacious, though she didn't have to mind that in her present condition. There were some rocks, green plains and a small lake. Suitable for opaleyes, which originated from New Zealand. The area was bordered by magical barriers that contrasted shimmering with the remaining nature. As if a wafer-thin tent made of diamonds had been stretched over everything. Impressive.

_I'm in Romania. At a dragon reserve. I can neither transform back nor move my legs._

Her stomach contracted.

_And I am hungry._

Sharon craned her neck. Not far away was a huge rock face with a door which barely stood out from it. Someone would probably use it soon and inquire about her condition.

 _What should I do then_ , the witch asked herself restlessly. She nearly chewed her lower lip with the fangs.

The transformation kept failing. Therefore, she needed an outsider to cast the reversal spell. But how did you call someone's attention to the fact that you were not a dragon but a human being? She could not speak. Moreover, her movement was severely restricted.

Lost in thought, Sharon moved her tail and flinched when it came into contact with the lake's water.

_At least I won't die of thirst…_

With some effort she moved the tail towards her head. Greedily her tongue caught the sticking drops. Then she repeated the process. The water was refreshing. Sweet and clear and perfectly kept clean with magic. An idea came to her.

Sharon lifted her tail and dared a look over her shoulder, even though the movement caused tears of pain in her eyes. Doggedly, she struggled with a message in the earth - but it was futile. All that remained were unreadable scribbles.

Snorting in frustration, Sharon bedded her head on her forelegs. Her tail fell to the ground. For now it was difficult to hold both up over a longer period of time. But her old strength would come back - sooner or later.

The witch focused on the door in the rock face.

_I wonder how long it will take for someone to show up?_

She waited. But not for long. About half an hour after waking up, a sound occurred that stood out against those of nature. The door opened - first a little, then completely. A man stepped inside the enclosure, who Sharon immediately studied intensively.

Red hair. Countless freckles. A few scars. Not particularly tall, though broad-shouldered and sturdily built. According to the witch's estimation he possessed an unconventional attractiveness which certainly guaranteed him both female and male attention.

The stranger had something slung over his shoulder that she could not see from her perspective. The left hand carried a bucket, which he put down in some distance away from her. In the right one his wand rested ready for action.

"Ah, you're awake." Warm eyes and a deep voice. "Then I'd better introduce myself."

Confused, Sharon watched the wizard put a hand on his chest as if he was about to bow or take an oath.

"My name is Charlie," he said with a nod. "I'll take care of you from now on."

After this short introduction, he approached her in slow motion. Every step seemed extremely deliberate and not taken by chance. His eyes were constantly fixed on her own while he held his head slightly down. As a human, Sharon would have rolled her eyes. Surely this guy didn't actually believe that a dragon cared about such feigned submission?

"Relax… I don't mean you any harm."

Charlie fumbled blindly for his back and held something white in the air shortly afterwards. It was a chicken.

"Look, brought you something," he smiled. "Something really delicious that not even the others get."

When his words were followed by clicks of the tongue, Sharon had to sigh inwardly - what an absurd situation.

"Somehow I just don't believe you," she replied dryly. "You probably have plenty of chickens and those are definitely not reserved for only one dragon."

Her sounds must have been slightly aggressive. Charlie raised his hands defensively. Thereby the chicken hit his biceps. 

"Hey, it's all right. I won't come any nearer," he reassured and used the levitation charm to carry the so-called "gourmet meal" in front of her feet. Not even the feathers had been plucked. With a shudder she noticed the orange animal eyes, which were staring openly at her.

"You must eat something, otherwise you'll starve," Charlie said as if he could recognise her reluctance and then muttered to himself: "Opaleyes prefer to hunt sheep and the like… but you're still too weak for that. Maybe there is…"

While the wizard elaborated his strategy, Sharon had other concerns. Of course, she knew that he was right. She would not last long without food. Even less so in her dragon form, in which she had always been able to eat ten times as much. And she already possessed a healthy appetite in her human form.

"Oh damn…" the witch cursed when her stomach growled noticeably once more. "Guess I have to. But certainly no raw meat."

Carefully, Sharon tested her mouth and throat like an unpredictable lighter. When a small flame escaped her, Charlie was pulled out of his sunken state. Fascinated, he watched her roast the chicken until its feathers glowed and slowly dissipated.

"You prefer your food well done, huh?" the wizard realised. "Got it."

Sharon raised a wing to block his view. If she had to eat like a real dragon, then at least without an observer. But Charlie didn't seem to mind. While she chewed on the chicken with bated breath, his gaze drifted along her fanned out wing. He had never seen anything like it before.

As the last piece of meat slid down her throat, her ears listened to his monologue.

"…never seen. No wonder you're regarded as one of the most popular dragon species," he said. "Those pearly scales and the glittering eyes alone… Like a rainbow."

Sharon lowered her wing and was greeted by a smile that could certainly illuminate a dark room.

"You are unbelievably beautiful…"

Embarrassed, the witch turned her head away at this sudden compliment. In her human form she would have blushed to the ears and collarbone.

 _He doesn't mean you. Not your true self_ , Sharon remembered herself. _Damn dragon weirdo._

While she cursed in her mind that countless people - including experts in the field of magical creatures - were obviously unable to distinguish a real dragon from an animagus, Charlie followed his usual working routine.

With a wave of his wand, he fetched the bucket he had previously put down.

"Okay, now to your wounds," he warned. "I already did a rough cleaning while you were asleep. Had hoped the sleeping draught would work a little bit longer. But never mind. We'll manage somehow, right?"

Sharon snorted at the word "we" and stretched her neck to examine the contents of the bucket. It was a greenish paste with small pieces of different colours.

As a human this visual impression would probably have remained alone. But in her present form Sharon perceived everything enhanced and a certain sense came to the fore - the sense of smell.

This allowed her nose to recognise the individual components of the mixture, such as dittany, almond oil and chamomile - common healing ingredients. It was a pleasant fragrance, which, however, became overshadowed when a gentle breeze brought a different one. A significantly more intense, lively scent.

_Oh my…_

Sharon's nostrils inflated. She couldn't remember ever describing a man as fragrant at the first encounter. Not as a human and certainly not as a dragon - but there was a first time for everything.

Charlie smelled wonderful. Like a forest after a rain shower, through which a note of tea flew, he must have drunk only recently. Fresh, strong and unmistakably masculine.

Slightly overwhelmed by this discovery, she noticed with a little delay that the wizard was looking at her thoughtfully rather than turning his words into action.

"What? Do you need an invitation? I won't rip your head off…" Sharon grumbled and then stopped abruptly. "Okay, I guess I shouldn't say things like that in this form."

Her distinct humming made the other one grin.

"Patience is a virtue," Charlie replied, as if he had understood every dragon sound. His instincts were good - she had to give him that. But not good enough to spot the witch in the creature.

Sharon sighed hot steam and was caught off guard by several stunning spells in the next second. Head, wings, tail, legs - in that order. Even the slightest muscle movement seemed impossible afterwards.

Charlie lowered his wand. Exhaling.

"Sorry, but I had to," he said apologetically. "When you are healed eventually, I'm sure you'll forgive me."

With the bucket in his hand, the wizard entered her personal space. Once there, he immediately began to apply the green paste to her wounds. It hurt, but Sharon had expected it. She pinched her watery eyes together and heard how he spoke to her with soothing words.

 _Pretty talkative_ , the witch thought. _Is that in the job description for dragon keepers?_

After a while - Charlie had circumnavigated her once by now - her neck suddenly received tender caresses. A feeling that was so pleasant, especially after the previous pain, that her tensed muscles relaxed immediately.

"Just a thin layer for now. The wound secretion must still be able to flow off," Charlie muttered. "Don't worry, it'll get better each time."

Sharon would have liked to know how many times she had to endure this procedure until her full recovery. But since he never would have understood her question, she limited herself to a resigned sound.

Charlie took a seat on a nearby rock.

"Now that you're part of the family, you need a suitable name."

He reached into his trouser pocket - fireproof dragon hide like the rest of his protective clothing - and pulled out a piece of parchment which he had folded twice.

"All right." He opened it. "I've already written down a few ideas, but not chosen a favourite yet."

Sharon's eyes became slits. The previous sense of well-being was immediately forgotten. 

"A new name? No chance. You can forget that."

Her grumpy growl made Charlie raise an eyebrow.

"I haven't even started yet." His finger traced down the list. "Wait a second before you turn them all down."

The witch looked up to the sky and wished she could have rolled her eyes like a human. But even such a reaction would probably have escaped the dragon keeper's attention. Sharon wondered if a different form would have made it easier to reveal her as an animagus. Dragons ranked notoriously among the most intelligent creatures of the magical world. So certain reactions didn't draw further attention.

Meanwhile, the wizard had leapt to his feet and walked thoughtfully from one point to another. Repeatedly he scrutinised her, tested a name and immediately shook his head.

"Something euphonious…" Charlie decided. "Appropriate for a beauty like you…"

A new wave of red rushed into her face. It was inevitable. These blunt compliments rattled her.

Suddenly the wizard stopped.

"Hey, what have we here?"

Sharon followed his gaze, which was aimed at something on her chest area.

"You've got a birthmark. Looks a bit like…" He paused for a moment. "…a heart."

As soon as the last word had left his mouth, the witch froze. Her identifying mark. The only element of her human body that remained. Perhaps this would indicate that she was not a real dra…

"How unusual. But very pretty."

…or not.

While Sharon wondered why fate had bestowed her such an inconspicuous animagus mark, Charlie's features brightened. He had an idea. In order to capture it, he immediately tapped on the parchment with the tip of his wand. Ink formed five letters.

"Inimă," he smiled and nodded contentedly. "This is Romanian for heart. Just perfect."

Before Sharon could react in any way, a bright figure of mist appeared out of nowhere. It was a patronus in the shape of a parrot.

Elegantly, the animal landed on Charlie's arm, which he had stretched out reflexively. The beak opened and a female voice sounded.

"Charles Weasley, get your ass into zone 3," she urged. "Cheryl's team needs our help. It's about Zoltán."

Charlie rubbed the bridge of his nose with a groan.

"Not again. These pubertal outbursts of rage just won't end."

He waved the wand and called his own patronus to give it his okay. Shortly afterwards, a rhino rushed across the lake with unexpected speed.

Charlie stroked her neck one last time.

"Okay, sweetheart, don't forget where we left off." He winked. "To celebrate your naming, I'll get you something really delicious. You are still hungry for sure."

Normally, Sharon would have snorted something sarcastic in expectation of more chickens. But after what had been just said, she was left speechless. Stunned, the witch stared after the man who hurriedly left her enclosure. When he was out of sight, her pent-up thoughts escaped in the company of small sparks of fire.

"Weasley? As in Harry Potter - war hero - Weasley?"

She froze.

"Sweetheart?!"

Fortunately, the problem with Zoltán - a young horntail - could be stopped quickly. As soon as his outburst of rage had deprived him of so much energy that his torrents of fire barely measured a metre, it was easy for the dragon keepers to put him out of action.

It hurt Charlie to see a creature suffer. There was no doubt that Zoltán wanted a life of freedom. One that the wizard would have loved to bestow on him. But the danger for mankind and the surrounding environment was just too great.

After parting with Cheryl's team, Charlie made his way to the spot where the live food for the dragons was kept. Jolina joined him while the rest of their team set out to check the condition of a recently diseased vipertooth - a flu in which every sneeze sprayed burning nasal mucus.

"I'm beginning to think that Zoltán is doing this on purpose so that we give him our attention," Jolina grumbled when they reached their destination. "Or is it just my imagination?"

Charlie opened the door to the stables, from which distinct cackling and other animal sounds emanated. He waited until the witch had entered. Then he followed her. The sweat of the animals weighed heavily in the air - horses, cows, sheep, chickens and so many more that the menu of a dragon included.

"Every week at least once and always around the same time. What do you think?" he replied with a grin. "Give him another half year and hopefully then he'll be calmer."

The two talked for a bit while they prepared the food for their respective dragons. Charlie shouldered two chickens and made a mental note of slaughtering a sheep in the next few days to surprise Inimă with it. As long as her condition prevented her from hunting on her own, her food could not run away.

"How's it going with the opaleye?" Jolina asked as they stepped outside. Each of them had a cow on a leash that was under the influence of a calming draught. On a nearby pasture their families and friends grazed.

"Inimă."

"Ah, beautiful name," she smiled and nodded in agreement. "Well?"

Charlie pondered about his first moments with the creature. One could call their first contact a success. No firestorms. No bites. No scratches. Not even the attempt of an attack.

"She… I can't really explain it, but she seems kind of… different."

"Different?"

"Well… Almost tame."

Jolina paused. Her wand resembled a mother's reprimanding finger.

"You better be careful," the witch admonished. "Dragons cannot be tamed. Not even those who have known us since birth. This opaleye… Inimă… is in an unfortunate situation due to her immobility and you represent her only chance of survival. She could just be lurking and as soon as she feels better again…"

The witch formed her hands into claws and imitated a jump attack.

"I'm aware of that. Didn't become a dragon keeper yesterday." Charlie kicked a stone on the floor. "But you forget that opaleyes are calmer by nature. Usually they're no threat to humans."

"Nevertheless, you should be careful not to upset her with anything. She has been under a lot of stress for an indefinite period of time," Jolina replied.

Her right hand pulled on the rope and thereby encouraged her cow to walk on.

"Caution is the mother of wisdom."


	4. Time goes by

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it! :)  
> And thank you so much for the kudos!

A famous muggle physicist once said that time is relative.

Sixty seconds were one minute. Sixty minutes an hour. And each day measured twenty-four hours. Yet everyone possessed a different perception of time - and Sharon had to realise that her own was increasingly getting worse.

The days as a dragon merged into each other. At some point the witch didn't even know anymore what day of the week it was if she didn't catch it by chance. A feeling of timelessness arose. A feeling that awakened no pleasant memories.

She thought back to the time after the war when her work had become a catalyst for dark emotions and thoughts. Work and isolation. At least until she could escape from this hole - with willpower and the support of good people like her friend Andrea.

After that, Sharon had made the decision to invest her energy in other things. She no longer wanted to fight and solve crimes, but to save and heal what such left behind. To quit her work as an auror and to run her family's clinic full time seemed like the right way to do that. Although she doubted ever being able to follow in her parents' footsteps - those of a healer and a doctor.

Sharon closed her eyes. Memories flashed. Red. So much red.

To distract herself, she inhaled deeply, allowing her lungs to take in and absorb the surrounding air more than usual. The witch filtered the different scents of nature and tried to name them.

_Earth… grass… resin… moss… water… Charlie…_

Her eyes opened. The dragon keeper was not in the enclosure at the moment, but since their first encounter he had honoured her with his presence on a daily basis. To be more precise, an everyday life had arisen that divided her day into three phases.

Sunrise - Charlie brought her breakfast, which consisted of "tasty" sheep with increasing frequency, and examined her wounds.

Noon - Charlie used magic to clean the enclosure while she pretended to sleep in order to avoid watching him during said process - although the witch suspected that he was aware of her acting.

Sunset - Charlie brought more food, cleaned her remaining scales and checked the stability of the barriers. But never in silence. At every opportunity he spoke to her as if doing so was the most normal thing in the world.

To put it in a nutshell: Her new life consisted of Charles Weasley. Like a nanny one couldn't get rid of.

Sharon thought back to the moment when his full name was first mentioned. To the surprise that had immediately overwhelmed her.

_I can't believe that a Weasley takes care of me. Merlin, are there many who would like to be in my skin right now. Even if it's that of a dragon…_

After the war, reporters had arrived from everywhere to snatch interviews with the Golden Trio and their closest comrades. Especially the Weasleys, who had made a decisive contribution to Harry Potter's victory due to their unshakeable bravery and selfless compassion, and thus became one of the press's main targets.

Sharon still remembered the crowds in the Ministry, trying to catch the Weasleys who worked there. Or Andrea's joke that the Office for the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts had never received so many visitors until then.

It had been the kind of turmoil Sharon always felt uneasy about. How ironic that now she, of all people, learned from one member of said family the story of his life. At least that's how it felt.

During their one-sided conversations, the wizard spoke of his daily working life, the other dragons and their peculiarities, but also of more private things like his love for black coffee, the school days at Hogwarts and how difficult it sometimes was to stay in the loop with his loved ones and the happenings in England. The latter always caused him to lower his gaze before he changed the subject with his usual grin.

Sharon became more and more familiar with the redhead and soon knew so much about him that her guilty conscience continued to rise in the face of his unawareness. At some point, she decided to answer him - even if it didn't make any difference in the end and he could only hear the usual growls, hums and hisses.

The witch told him about her work as an auror, the last mission that had gone completely wrong and the fear of remaining a dragon forever. But also about her abhorrence of black coffee, her school days at Ilvermorny - which she had visited for the sake of her American father - and that there was nobody left for her to call family because of the war. Sharon remembered the hot dragon tears which had escaped her during that moment of conversation. How Charlie had first looked at her in bewilderment and then stroked her in a concerned manner. His murmured words.

"Don't worry, someday everything is gonna be alright and the sky will be yours again."

And despite the obvious language barrier between them, that sentence had been exactly what her soul needed at that time.

A sound in the distance pulled Sharon from her thoughts. Blinking, she stretched her head to check the position of the sun. Noon. Finally.

 _Pull yourself together_ , she rebuked herself. _You just saw him a few hours ago._

Inwardly, she had to sigh at her impatience. But the visits of the dragon keeper were the only diversion she received during the day. There was simply nothing to do. Her body couldn't even fly, because it was still too weak. Thus only her thoughts remained to keep her company in Charlie's absence. Thoughts and cloud pictures - it was maddening.

 _Pull yourself together_ , the witch repeated emphatically as the door to the enclosure opened.

Charlie stepped inside. As always, the wand rested in his right hand as a safety precaution. When he made eye contact with her, the left rose up for the usual greeting.

"Hey, sweetheart," he called. "No nap today? Missed me, didn't you?"

Sharon blew hot air. As a human her lips would have fluttered.

"There are quite a lot of things that I miss. Hot showers, treacle tarts, muggle movies, my real life… But if you work hard enough, you might make it into the top 10."

Her dragon sounds caused the same reaction a meowing cat elicited from its owner - an unknowing smile.

"Yes, I've missed you, too," Charlie replied and proceeded to carefully follow his work routine as usual. After inspecting the condition of the enclosure and whipping it into shape, the wizard approached her. The raised wand in his hand gave her an idea of what would happen next.

"Sorry, a little change of plan today," Charlie said and immediately stunned her body parts. "Let's clean your scales now to have a bit of extra time in the evening."

Sharon noticed a strange expression in his eyes, impossible to read. Thoroughly, she studied him as he approached her from the side to examine her legs.

"Well, that looks really good," Charlie muttered. "Before long you'll be able to move again without difficulty."

It was true. Her healing progressed steadily. Although she couldn't stand yet, the pain had greatly subsided thanks to the healing paste.

The witch observed how Charlie magically lifted a portion of the water from the nearby lake into the air. A shiny sphere formed itself above her, reflecting the sunlight.

_Here we go again… That's exactly why I meant hot showers…_

Sharon closed her eyes as the first cold drops trickled down on her. Once her body was completely coated with wetness, she felt a brush gliding over her scales. Vigorous and meticulous.

From then on it usually didn't take long for the dragon keeper to start talking. Sometimes he even sang - extremely flat and fragmentary, but nevertheless with a certain charm.

Not today. Charlie remained silent.

"Did something happen?" the witch asked hesitantly. This kind of silence made her uneasy. She tried a joke to calm herself: "If you want, I could set someone on fire and we'll make it look like a work accident. All I need is a name."

As if her dragon sounds had an awakening effect, his hands stopped moving. Charlie sighed.

"I have a date tonight," he announced with a crooked smile. At the same time his eyebrows pulled together. Almost as if he couldn't believe that the last sentence was true.

"Her name is Elaine. I met her a few days ago. She works as an ambassador for the British Ministry and is supposed to initiate some kind of new import law. For wand wood. Looks like Romania will soon be known for more than just its dragons and vampires."

He laughed quietly and immediately proceeded talking. More specifically, his lungs barely filled with air.

"A really cute laugh. And a quick tongue. I like that. So far she seems to enjoy her stay in Romania. At least the food and the atmosphere. She loves desserts like cozonac, but without raisins because of an allergy. Besides…"

Sharon switched off. During this flood of information, she realised that he was only repeating it to himself to be better prepared for the date. His nervousness came as a surprise. Then again, it was probably naive to assume that he could not feel such. A dangerous everyday working life did not automatically make a person immune to any delicate situation. Something that Sharon was only too well aware of.

At some point, Charlie started brushing her scales again.

"…didn't really notice her at first. Blonde hair. Blue eyes. So actually rather Bill's type. I've always had a weakness for dark hair and…"

Charlie stopped and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"What am I even talking about? Get a hold on yourself, damn it. It's just a date. No dragon running riot - no offence."

"None taken."

Sharon watched the wizard crawl under her wing to reach the scales that weren't directly visible. In such moments, she always felt like a car under whose bonnet a look was taken.

Once there, Charlie finally came to the core of his story.

"Elaine always wanted to see a dragon up close, so I made the suggestion to show her you and your enclosure. Would that be okay?"

After his question he peeked out from beneath the wing. An eyebrow raised questioningly. For a long moment Sharon didn't know what to answer. This whole situation - a man asking a dragon to be his wing woman? - was irritating.

"What are you asking me for?" she finally puffed. "Apparently it's all decided already. I'm not being offered the luxury of having a say."

As if he could feel that she wasn't thrilled by the idea, he caressed the edge of her wing. Sharon held her breath. His calloused fingers felt good. Too good.

"You know, I have something really great for you as a thank you," he smiled and put a finger on his lips. "But the whole thing must remain our little secret. Normally outsiders are not allowed in the enclosures."

 _I wonder why_ , Sharon thought sarcastically. _They're just fire-breathing creatures, some of whom eat people. Totally harmless._

Momentarily, the witch grumbled. Then she sighed defeated. After all, it made no difference. This date would make Charlie happy. So no reason not to play along - right?

"Okay, at least you have chosen the right dragon. Hopefully, the risk pays off for you and you'll get lucky tonight."

After the dragon keeper had brushed the left side of her body, he gave his attention to the other one. It stayed quiet between them until her remaining scales were completely cleaned. As much as the witch felt worried that her animagus form would not vanish - there was no denying that the care she received had a relaxing effect. Almost like a strange wellness holiday.

_Enjoy the Romanian flair in the open air. The vitality of a dragon could soon be yours._

While the witch was mentally working on an advertising slogan, Charlie took a seat on the rock near her, as he did on every one of his breaks. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a piece of parchment. On several lines, the ink pressed itself to the back, which demonstrated the amount of pressure the writer must have applied to the feather. Charlie's eyes flew over the content. Finally, he tilted his head back. A ray of sunlight tickled his nose.

"Since…" He closed his eyes sighing. "… _then_ Mum's letters have considerably increased. She's worried about me. Afraid that I'll grow lonely here."

Sharon nodded understandingly. It wasn't the first time he talked about his mother. Molly Weasley was obviously a person who could be as much overprotective as stubborn.

"Between the lines, she's urging me again to finally settle down." His grip on the parchment tightened. "But I'm settled down enough already. At least I write her that every time she asks - directly and indirectly."

The letter disappeared into his jacket pocket where it clearly weighed on his mind. His posture seemed dejected.

"But to be honest, this answer has become a habit by now. Makes the whole thing sort of easier. Actually…" Charlie paused briefly to make a face. "Oh Merlin, I can never tell Mum that or she won't leave me any peace at all… But actually, it would be nice, you know? Wife and children, I mean…"

Sharon blinked at him. Surprised. That was a new side he had hidden from her till now.

While she examined him, the dragon keeper pulled out a cloth, which he dampened with water by using _Aguamenti_. Sighing, he cooled his neck.

"But try finding a witch who would agree to move into nowhere and marry a man who could lose his life to an aggressive dragon on any given day."

Head shaking, the wizard gave her a smile as if he wanted to express his relief that they were beyond this stage of their relationship. Although such a thing had not occurred and Sharon would have never wounded him - at least not intentionally.

The witch thought about her past relationships, which had suffered from her job and sometimes even ended because of it. As an auror, the protection of the magical community came first. Personal interests took second place. Furthermore, regulated working hours were not ensured. Dark wizards and witches failed to respect certain schedules while committing crimes.

In her mind, Sharon lived through fragments of her past - lost love, strengthening life experiences and missed paths she would never take. It almost slipped her attention how Charlie revealed further arguments for being single. 

"…can't be changed. Besides, I've heard many times before that they're worried about the safety. But the residential areas are surrounded by numerous protection barriers and no resident family has ever been harmed… At least not by a dragon…"

Charlie lowered his forehead onto the cloth. Mumbling incomprehensibly, he indulged in his monologue until Sharon abruptly put an end to it. With a snort she spread her wings - and struck.

The sudden wind blow threw the wizard off balance. His body fell sideways from the rock and landed, devoid of any elegance, on the ground. With wide eyes he got back to his feet - and laughed out loud.

"Honestly! Looks like someone's no longer stunned."

His smile was like a sun rising in her chest and spreading warmth everywhere. Sharon felt proud of having caused such a reaction in him. She was happy - at least until he spoke on.

"You don't know problems like mine, do you?" Charlie dusted earth off his clothes and pocketed the cloth. "Just wait till it's mating season again. All the males will fight for a temperamental beauty like you."

Stiffness seized hold of her. This thought had never crossed her mind until now. The blessing of a private enclosure.

Intensively, the witch tried to remember when this period took place every year and prayed that she would have succeeded in regaining her human form by then. The notion of mating with a dragon in heat created a sickness which she quickly tried to suppress.

Sharon drew such a deep breath that her nostrils inflated. A reaction that the dragon keeper, as usual, misinterpreted.

"I understand. Of course you want to make the choice when the time comes, don't you?" Charlie grinned. "The ultimate alpha female."

For a few minutes more, he kept her company until it was time for him to take care of other dragons or some other activities. At the enclosure door he stopped again. Turned around. Whispered.

"I can't wait to see your babies someday…"

_This date is a disaster._

Charlie pressed his lips together, but still managed to smile. And to think that the evening had actually started well.

On Aaron's recommendation he had reserved a table at the "Casă Șolomonar". A magical restaurant, which was deemed to be one of the most popular venues within the nearby all-wizard village. Initially, Charlie wanted to reject this suggestion and plan something more informal. Perhaps a walk in nature, a visit to a coffee shop or even just the secret trip to Inimă's enclosure. But then Jolina had intervened in the conversation.

"Oh no, you're gonna take her out the right way. How long has it been since you had a proper date? Before the last mating season? Longer?"

The witch had not waited for an answer and presented a rather strange argument.

"One never knows when the Queen of Hearts will strike!"

After that every objection had been in vain. On the agreed evening, Charlie had punctually picked up his date at her temporary accommodation, a muggle hotel in Bucharest, and apparated them from an inconspicuous alley to the restaurant.

Aaron and Jolina hadn't promised too much. The ambience as well as the staff and food had been excellent. Something that unfortunately could not be said about getting to know his date. Something had not felt right. As if the spark he had first imagined between them had simply vanished.

While speaking, their topics of conversation had remained in the normal terrain - work, family and hobbies. Nothing exciting. But then the witch really wanted to analyse his wand. Because it was well-known that it could reveal a lot about its master - both positive and negative.

"Interesting. Black walnut wood, if I'm not mistaken. That's rather unusual. Intuition and intellect must be very pronounced in you." Elaine had admired the elegant grain on the wood. "A very loyal wand. What kind of core does it have?"

"Unicorn hair."

His answer had caused a surprised expression on her face. A reaction Charlie was already used to. Most people expected dragon heartstring due to his profession. But in reality, very few dragon keepers carried a wand with this kind of core - too much temperament and therefore resulting accidents.

After her question, Elaine had continued the investigation of his wand - and frowned at the sight of its wooden handle.

"This isn't your first, is it?"

"How-"

"Wear marks." Her pursed lips had been obvious. "The work with dragons is apparently very dangerous for wands. Fire and wood don't harmonise well with each other. What a pity that your first one barely lasted - or is this already your third?"

Charlie had opened his mouth with the intention of giving her an explanation. That it was indeed only his second wand. That he had given his first - ash wood, unicorn hair, 12 inches - to his youngest brother years ago, because their family could not afford a new one for the start of school. And that he knew how to handle his wand and other possessions very well. Better than most people.

But one look into the witch's eyes had sufficed to realise that it would have been wasted air. She had simply jumped to her own conclusions without giving him a chance to speak. As if his wand represented some kind of criminal record.

In all honesty, Charlie would have liked to end the date early. But he was a man who kept his word. And if this witch wished to see a real dragon for the first time in her life, he would be the last one to prevent it.

For this reason, the two now stood outside the door to Inimă's enclosure. Charlie was smiling even before the door was fully open. The pearly scales of his opaleye shimmered in the light of the setting sun. A breathtaking sight indeed - at least for him. Because Elaine immediately used his back as her protective wall.

"I… I don't think that was a good idea."

Sharon raised her head as the unmistakable sound of an opening door resounded - and an unknown fear-soaked voice.

_That doesn't sound good._

Restlessness spread through her belly until Charlie's gentle words managed to dispel it. But this time not herself, but a stranger, was their recipient.

"You don't have to be afraid. She can't stand up because of an injury. And her fire reaches only a few metres," the wizard said. "I thought you've always wanted to see a dragon up close? That's hardly possible behind my back."

Blonde hair flashed on his left side when the witch hesitantly emerged.

"Are you sure there's no danger?" Her nervousness made her look like a prey on the hop. "I'm very attached to my life."

Sharon examined the woman who had aroused the dragon keeper's interest. Elaine - a pretty name for a pretty person. Strawberry-blond curls. Blue eyes in a heart-shaped face. Lace skirt and dot blouse. Almost like a life-size doll.

Charlie crossed his arms.

"You know not all dragons prey on humans, right? Only certain species require you to be careful - vipertooths and horntails, for example."

"And what is _that_?"

Before Sharon could contain herself, a growl passed between her bared teeth. The blonde let out a surprised scream.

"That? I may not be a human being right now, but I'm still a woman!"

For a long moment, Sharon pondered the idea of biting off someone's head. After all, in this form nobody could accuse her of cannibalism - correct?

Then she paused. Irritated.

_Why am I so upset, anyway? She doesn't know any better._

While the witch marvelled at the speed her patience had snapped, Charlie felt his own getting thinner and thinner.

" _Her_ name is Inimă and she is a female opaleye," he corrected. "And you really don't have to be afraid. She's just very talkative and hasn't had dinner yet. That makes her a little bit indignant."

Sharon snorted at the last sentence.

"You would be, too, if your stomach was suddenly ten times as big and hungry. I saw your packed lunches. As a dragon, you'd be worse than me."

Her growled answer made Charlie smile. And not for the first time Sharon wished a miracle would happen so that at least the language barrier between them would come to an end. But it was pointless.

The wizard turned to his date, whose eyes kept jumping to the exit.

"If you like, I could feed her. A full stomach makes her sleepy after a while."

At his suggestion, the witch scanned the surrounding area. Her lack of enthusiasm seemed palpable.

"I don't see food anywhere."

"Hm, your right arm looks quite appetising, so-"

"What?!"

The sheer horror made her voice crack. Charlie managed to maintain a serious face for three seconds. Three seconds - before a distinctly laugh erupted from him. Infected by his reaction, Sharon joined him, although her sounds rather resembled a fitfully breathing, which produced steam.

Blushing from head to neck, Elaine stomped her foot.

"Do you think that's funny?"

"Kind… of…!" Charlie held his stomach. Striving to catch his breath. "You should have… seen your face!"

Obviously anything but thrilled by the situation, the witch spun round on her heel.

"That's enough. I'm leaving," she said and raised her wand. When nothing happened, her eyes widened in shock. Immediately, she examined the stem and handle with a devotion that once more illustrated her love for wands. 

Charlie took a few deep breaths to regain his composure.

"Apparating only works outside. For security reasons," he explained and then added: "Sorry, it was just a joke. I thought humour might free you a little from your baseless nervousness."

"Baseless?!" The witch pointed hissing at Sharon. "That's a dragon, damn it! An unpredictable creature with claws and fangs that can burn you alive! Are you aware how many victims there are every year? How many deaths?"

"Yes."

Charlie's good mood had now completely disappeared. With crossed arms he came closer until there was hardly any distance left between them.

"And are you aware how many of those victims are people who knowingly trespass on the territories of dragons and disturb them in their natural habitat? And for what reasons?"

He raised a hand to enumerate examples.

"Young wizards and witches who want to pass a test of courage. Tourists who need an extraordinary holiday photo. Rich snobs who would like to brag about a fire-breathing pet. Magizoologists without the necessary dragon expertise who believe themselves to be the next Newton Scamander."

His last finger, the thumb, was raised.

"Criminals who don't shy away from wounding or even killing these wonderful creatures to steal their eggs, horns, teeth, organs…" Charlie clenched his hand to a fist. "…and scales."

Sharon felt her eyes burning. When the wizard looked in her direction, a lump as big as a pumpkin formed in her throat. Hastily, she looked away. Afraid to unexpectedly burst into tears.

Silence arose. Her lips pressed together, Elaine stared at the ground after his speech.

"Sorry," she whispered eventually. "I've never seen it this way before."

Charlie rubbed his neck.

"It's okay… You're not the only one."

The longer the pauses in their conversation grew, the more the gravity on their bodies seemed to increase. Elaine cleared her throat at some point.

"I… I better go now."

"Shall I take you-"

"No. I can find my own way back."

The witch forced a little smile. When her hand came into contact with the door handle, she paused again.

"Thank you."

But for what she expressed her gratitude - his last gesture, his eye-opening speech or the few good moments of the date - remained a secret.

Once the witch had disappeared, Charlie exhaled so strongly as if he had lifted a set of heavy weights. Sighing, he ran his fingers through his hair.

"Well, that really went fantastic, didn't it?"

Sharon flared her nostrils and stared at him without comment. So long, until the wizard's shoulders slumped down, defeated.

"Yes, you're right," he agreed. "No more dates in your enclosure. But don't worry. You'll still get your reward, of course."

Sharon watched how he pulled out his wand and stared at it for a long moment before checking the barriers of the enclosure like any other evening.

"A few days ago, she had been talking about loving to see a dragon up close and today it's suddenly the complete opposite."

Charlie carefully pointed the wand at different corners and nodded contentedly as its tip emitted a blue light. Almost grumbling, he continued.

"Why do people say that they want something specific when it's actually not true at all?" The wand was put away. "I can understand that she wanted to please me upon our first encounter, but what good would lies have done in the long run? And why, in the name of Merlin, was this date so terribly exhausting?"

An unfamiliar gloomy mood emanated from him. One that Sharon seemed to receive directly. She wondered if this was because she had grown fond of the redhead or because, as a dragon, she reacted more sensitively to emotions. Probably both.

After Charlie had brought her the promised reward - a bear, a bloody bear! - he took his usual place on the rock. In his hands a notebook in which he probably recorded some field studies or something similar. Once both had finished their activities of eating and writing, the setting sun on the horizon kissed the mountains, soaking them in a red-orange light. Soon it would have disappeared completely.

"I think I give up."

Astonished, Sharon looked towards the dragon keeper, who had jumped up after this sentence only to make flat stones skip across the lake.

"I've already met countless witches by now. But none of them had understood me enough or wanted to commit themselves to this life long-term. Fuck, I'm tired of those short flings…" He shook his head. "This work here, the dragons are my dream… That will never change."

The seriousness in his voice was reflected in his whole posture.

"Someday, I'll die here."

Sharon abruptly closed her eyes when she heard the conviction in his words. The idea of his death hit her harder than expected, even though he spoke of a distant future.

The next moment, however, the wizard laughed. Something that didn't surprise Sharon. She had realised early on that he used cheerfulness to hide his true feelings.

Charlie picked up another stone.

"But who knows? Maybe tomorrow someone will walk into my life and turn my world upside down. A person with fire who sees all of this with the same eyes as I do."

The water rippled in circles as the stone leaped over the surface.

"But if not… then that's okay, too."

Sharon looked him over and recognised an important thing. This man was happy. He lived his dream and would not exchange it for anything in the world.

The witch felt something she had never expected a while ago. She felt… affection.

For a moment she imagined a life on the reserve. Not as a dragon, but as a human being. Magical creatures, the mountains and forests, pure nature… Charlie, with whom she could finally talk properly… a place to call home…

Sharon watched the sunset. Sighing inwardly.

_This truly sounds like a dream…_


	5. Fire at night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the fifth chapter with a little bit of action. Enjoy! :)

"Careful… Slowly… Relax…"

It was the third attempt. And she had always found a grain of truth in the phrase 'third time lucky'.

Sharon felt her muscles protesting as she once again shifted her weight to the legs. The rarely moved limbs felt heavy. As if they didn't belong to her, but to someone else.

Not far away, Charlie had raised both arms as if he intended to catch her in case of need. An idea that he hopefully would not translate into action - unless his goal was to live as a pancake from then on.

"Almost… Gently… Excellent…"

With every word that the dragon keeper murmured, Sharon grew more indignant. How many suitable words could come to a man's mind until he finally ran out of ideas?

Taking deep breaths, she concentrated on the feelings in her legs, which were almost fully straightened. Just a little further. A tiny little bit.

_You can do this_ , the witch encouraged herself internally. _Just don't give up._

With the last thought she released a deep growl that caused her throat to vibrate. Her claws pierced the earth as if intending to hurt it.

_Now!_

With a beat of her spread wings an upwind was produced, that helped her body upwards. Momentarily the world swayed. Then she had regained her former steadiness. Finally.

"Fuck, yeah!" Charlie punched a fist in the air. "You're standing! You did it!"

The dragon keeper could hardly keep his joy within bounds. Like her own personal cheerleader, he raised both arms in an exuberant gesture before they fell to his sides again. Then he repeated the movement.

His reaction ignited a now familiar warmth inside her, which had been growing in intensity for a while. Like hot chocolate on a winter's day. But not the cheap, thin kind. The creamy one topped with a garnish of marshmallows.

"Don't be too happy," Sharon remarked; amused. "Now I can kick your ass if you say something I don't agree with."

She almost laughed when the man seemingly began to nod in agreement.

"That concludes the biggest part of your healing process," he said with unmistakable relief. His eyes lit up. "You know what this means, don't you?"

"Um…"

"Free-range food!"

This exclamation was accompanied by a clapping of the hands, which Charlie immediately rubbed against each other while grinning. His anticipation failed to find an echo. Without altering her facial expression, the witch raised her tail.

"Sorry," she sighed. "But I warned you."

No sooner said, the lake received a blow that resounded much louder than Charlie's previous hand clapping. A wave rushed towards the land. Before the dragon keeper could even think of using his wand for a protection spell, the water hit his body.

Stiffened, soaked from top to bottom, he stared at her. Clothes and hair clung to him like a second skin. The witch felt the beginning of a laugh bubbling inside her.

"You…" Charlie began and wiped his face. "You didn't just do that!"

While he shook his hair like a dog, Sharon expected him to take revenge. But things turned out otherwise. Head shaking, mumbling to himself, he freed himself from his jacket… his undershirt… Oh Merlin…

"You really are an unique dragon. Or are all opaleyes like you?"

While the wizard was wringing out the garments and casting a drying spell afterwards, Sharon could not help but admire what he had revealed. Although it had been obvious before that he was well-toned, she could now marvel at every single freckled muscle dancing with his movements.

His body was like a documentation of his long-time work with dragons. Hand-sized scars from claws. Burns where the fire had caught him. Circular notches from half a bite wound. Basically, it seemed like a miracle that he was still standing and breathing.

To her surprise, two magical dragon tattoos - a Hungarian horntail and a Welsh green - adorned his skin as well. Playfully wrestling with each other, they flew a slalom around deeper scars and almost simultaneously spat a colourful fire. It was breathtaking.

Charles Weasley's naked torso presented a sight as shocking as it was arousing. When Sharon felt herself getting warm, she released little flames to cool off.

_Am I considered a voyeur, even if he knowingly undresses in front of me?_

The witch pondered and nodded eventually. By the time Charlie looked up, she had already lifted a wing, blocking her view of him and his erotic muscles.

Puzzled, he tilted his head.

"Sometimes you behave really oddly," the wizard muttered and paused because only recently the same thing had been thrown his way. By Jolina at yesterday's evening meeting, after announcing that he would take a quick inspection round.

"You may say inspection round, but in truth you want to visit Inimă," she had teased. "Let's face it, you spend much more time with her than with any other dragon. One might think you are in love."

Charlie had immediately joined in the ensuing laughter, but her words had affected him more than he thought possible. In love? With a dragon? That sounded like a joke his younger twin brothers would crack. And he would be surprised if they hadn't already done so behind his back.

Charlie pressed his lips together. After the war, there had been no room for jokes for a long time. The twins would have probably been the only ones capable of conjuring a smile on the faces of their fellows even in times of mourning - but that hadn't been possible. Charlie tried to repress the image of an exhausted George, watching over his brother's bed day and night. Both as pale as death itself. It wasn't until three months after the Battle of Hogwarts that Fred had finally awoken from his coma and, after a few more, fully recovered. At least physically. Their whole family had gotten off with a black eye and mental wounds. Some more, some less.

While the dragon keeper dressed again, lost in his thoughts, Sharon hid her head under the cover of her wing and thought back over the last few weeks. Although some days had seemed endless to her, she did have to admit that her existence as a dragon could have been much worse.

Carefully, the witch moved her legs before descending back to the ground due to the effort. She gave herself the nod. It was time. Now that she could finally stand, at last she would be able to write a message on the earth. A simple S.O.S., the word animagus or her name. That should be enough.

Sharon watched how Charlie stretched, listening with half an ear to him say that he couldn't wait to see her fly for the first time. His joy caused a sting in her chest.

_Tomorrow_ , she decided for her plan. _Definitely tomorrow._

This day would be the last one she spent with the dragon keeper in her current form.

Tomorrow everything would be different. Tomorrow he would get the shock of his life. Tomorrow she would be… a stranger.

But then things took a turn for the worse.

When Sharon was ripped from her sleep that night, she was disorientated for a long moment. A harsh sound pounded in her ears. Over and over and over again. It took her a while to realise that it was a siren. An alarm that cut through the usually peaceful melodies of nature like trumpet music in a library. In the distance, a bright glow tore the darkness apart. Fire. Something was in flames.

Sluggishly, Sharon stood up. Worry turned her stomach.

_It's nothing bad_ , she tried to tell herself. _Just a dragon fire that needs to get under control._

But unfortunately such thoughts could not convince. Not when a recurring alarm tormented one's own ears. Because of the noise, it almost slipped the witch's attention that someone entered her enclosure. A light started shining. And with the evanescence of darkness came the disappearance of Sharon's hope that it might be Charlie.

Instead, she found herself facing a strange man with hard features and remarkable stature. In the presence of her human form, he would have been the one to tower above her in a dragon-like manner. Something stung her nose. Metallic. Blood without a doubt.

The two stared at each other for a long moment. So long, until the siren suddenly fell silent. Sharon briefly heard the phantom of the noise in her ears - then finally silence.

She breathed a sigh of relief and noticed that her visitor had a similar reaction. As he lifted his wand, she watched every movement, no matter how small. Her fear of a possible attack, however, turned out to be unjustified when a blinding patronus shot out from the wand's tip. It was a squirrel that immediately jumped excitedly from one of the man's shoulders to the other.

Sharon was unsure of where she stood with the stranger. Only after his introductory sentence she exhaled audibly.

"I'm with Inimă now and everything seems to be fine. A weakening of the barriers like in the other enclosures, but no signs of forced entry or an assault." He spoke with a thick accent that she couldn't associate with any language at first. "What's your situation?"

The squirrel disappeared. Some time later, when a familiar rhino approached, Sharon's heart involuntarily took a leap. And another to the sound of an even more familiar voice.

"Thank Merlin. Then those bastards really only had their eyes on the north side." Charlie sounded rushed. He breathed heavily. "Two eggs are gone. Ridgeback."

The unknown man hissed something incomprehensible. Before he could pass on a new message to his patronus, another of its kind rushed through the air. It was the parrot that Sharon already knew. Once again it didn't bring good news. In fact they were even worse than last time.

"Pedro, hurry up, please! We have been able to sedate Madonna, but Zoltán won't stop rampaging! It's utter chaos!"

The woman's voice bounced as if she were running a slalom through the forest while speaking. Sharon felt her concern return many times over. Her instinct urged her to help. Every fiber of her long-time existence as an auror shouted for it. And when the unnamed woman eventually proceeded to speak half screaming, half frantic, something seemed to shatter in Sharon.

"Fuck, Charlie got hit!"

For a moment the witch couldn't breathe and closed her shimmering eyes. Charlie's face appeared in her head - freckled, laughing and so full of life. This mental image got lost among others that were long gone. Among equally joyful ones that would never return.

Sharon heard how the tall wizard - Pedro - cursed in his mother tongue.

_Spanish_ , the witch now recognised. In another situation, this would have elicited beautiful memories. Of the salty smell of seawater and castles of warm sand - of family vacations during her childhood. But now she only felt coldness and a fear that made her heart race.

Sharon smelled the blood in the air. The metallic scent worked like a key to a door she wanted to keep locked by any means possible. She fell into the past. Red. So much red. Her father in the hallway. On the stairs her mother. Cold. Dead. Murdered.

And Sharon could only grasp one thought before her body developed a life of its own.

_Not him!_

Something seethed inside her that was impossible to restrain. Heat flowed through her throat and erupted in the only possible way outside. Scarlet fire hit the ground, cutting through the air. It was fortunate that dragon keepers had excellent reflexes, for if Pedro had created his shield spell just three seconds later, he would certainly have suffered harm.

" _¡Mierda!_ " he exclaimed. "So much for not attacking anyone!"

But Sharon ignored this shout. She had seized the moment of fire to spread her wings and lift her body into the air. The daily stretching exercises had paid off. She made it all the way to the middle of the lake, although it was there that her body dropped briefly. The coolness of the water at her feet equaled an electric shock and immediately caused her to fly further up. Higher and higher.

Until there was a clear resistance, which however could be overcome with some effort. Her skin tingled as if covered by countless ants. She had broken through the barrier.

_Oh Merlin, I feel like a criminal breaking out of prison._

With a shake of her head, Sharon drove this thought away and concentrated on her balance and the wind under her wings. Only Charlie's face before her eyes as she headed towards where the forest fire turned night into day.

It took her only a few minutes to reach her destination. And upon her arrival, remorse arose in the witch due to her unconsidered action. In fact, there could hardly have been a more inconvenient situation to get overwhelmed by one's own feelings.

_Won't another dragon do more damage than help?_

This question shot through Sharon's mind as she flew over the source of the fire, enabling her to see the extent of the current turmoil for the first time. From above, she had an uninterrupted view of separate clearings whose surrounding trees were now blazing walls. Numerous people ran, shouted and cast spells. It was chaos in its highest form.

_…lie… Charlie… Charlie… Charlie…_

His name was like a mantra in her head while she tried to track him down. An impossibility, considering the countless noises and smells that made her head buzz. Or the fire's smoke, burning in her eyes.

Sharon soon felt her wings getting heavier. The more her muscles grew tired, the more she lost altitude, the more furious she became - furious with herself. In former times she had been able to fly for hours without getting out of breath. Now even half an hour pushed her body beyond its limits.

Just as Sharon considered landing somewhere and taking a short breather, she saw it. A wave of fire that shot into the sky a few hundred meters away. The witch panted with effort.

_There. Dragon. Charlie._

There was nothing else her head could produce when she focused all her concentration and endurance on reaching this new destination. Eventually, just behind a hill, a large number of other people and the source of the fire were waiting.

As the parrot patronus had reported, it concerned two dragons - a male horntail and a female ridgeback - who were situated some distance from each other. In a stunned state, the latter already rested under an extensive iron net, whose weight pushed her downwards. Her comb of pitch-black thorns gleamed threateningly in the glow of the fire. Eyes and growls expressed raving madness. The fury of a mother whose children had been stolen.

Groaning, Sharon landed on a larger rock that began to crumble under her heaviness. Her arrival didn't go unnoticed. Members of a group who had taken up position around the ridgeback retreated in shock. Only a handful seemed unimpressed.

Apparently frustrated, a female dragon keeper raised both hands before pressing the tip of her wand against her throat. The sonorus spell increased the volume of her voice, whose sound immediately revealed her as the owner of the parrot patronus.

"Inimă got out!"

As soon as the first people lifted their wands, Sharon puffed. She certainly wouldn't let herself be put out of action just like that. Not until she had confirmed that the reason for her breakout was safe - that Charlie was safe.

Although her blind determination made her thoughtful for a moment, it didn't last long. Sharon's eyes caught the raging horntail. And eventually her actual target in his vicinity.

With his back turned to a line of burning trees, Charlie performed numerous protection spells to shield himself and another man lying unconscious behind him. The heat of the fire affected him noticeably. Sweat floated on his forehead, causing his skin to shine. But what hit Sharon the hardest was the apparent wound that ran along his left arm and couldn't be prevented by the protective clothing. Blood trickled down like rainwater on a window pane. It dripped to the ground, where a small puddle had already accumulated.

This sight was too much. With a roaring in her ears, her massive body began to move. And the witch did the only thing that came to her mind on such short notice - she rammed the horntail with her whole body strength. Zoltán screamed his displeasure when he almost lost his balance.

"Inimă!"

Horrified by her sudden appearance, Charlie lost focus on his protection spells. He couldn't believe what he saw. What reason had prompted her to leave her enclosure? The egg thieves? The fire? A mistake on Pedro's part?

The dragon keeper held his forehead when a slight dizziness struck him, which was less due to his racing thoughts than to the ongoing loss of blood. Grinding his teeth, he applied a provisional healing spell to his wound. The bleeding stopped, but the pain barely subsided. He had never been good at that.

While Charlie inwardly cursed his mediocre healing abilities, Sharon endeavored to offer the horntail no attack surface. She felt his restlessness as if it were her own. A circumstance that came as no surprise. Many animagi were able to communicate with the fellow members of their species - at least to a certain degree. Unfortunately, until the present day, the witch had never been given the opportunity to come into contact with a real dragon before. After all, such creatures didn't live on any old street corner.

The horntail's screams vibrated in her body like amplified music during a concert. It wasn't a language of words that reached Sharon, but rather a language of feelings.

Zoltán was upset. The chaos overwhelmed him. Silence. He craved silence.

"Then just fly away!" the witch cried. "Fly away and stop destroying everything around you!"

But it was futile. Her words bounced off a wall of blind fury and excessive stress. And when the horntail got bombarded with several stunning spells, of which not even half hit their target, both of these things intensified even more. Sharon wasn't spared from the spells either. One of her forelegs suddenly felt numb.

"Inimă, fly back! I'm begging you!"

Charlie rushed to her side after reassuring himself that his unconscious colleague had been taken to safety by two other men. There was a worried sound in his voice that took Sharon by surprise. She thought about following his request - but too late. The horntail, enraged by the stunning spells, had decided to strike again. That in itself would have been bad enough. But then his target, of all people, had to be the one whose hair resembled the red cloth in the eyes of a bull. When his mouth revealed the onset of a fire, Sharon didn't waste a second thought. She acted.

Roaring, baring her teeth, she dropped in front of Charlie to form a protective wall. The impact pressed the air out of her lungs. She barely managed to lift her wings before the fire already licked across her scales. Scorching. Biting. Destroying.

" _No!_ "

Although Charlie's scream sounded at close range, he couldn't be heard because her own roar swallowed his voice. But even perfect silence wouldn't have made a difference. For a moment, completely numbed by pain, Sharon felt a pressure on her ears that eliminated all sounds. She was unable to tell how long her deafness lasted, but when it faded, hectic voices came to the fore. Only one was familiar.

"Careful!" the parrot witch shouted. "Direct the stunning spells towards his legs so he won't get hurt!"

Sharon lowered her left wing and hissed abruptly since the fire had hit it the hardest. To her relief, the horntail didn't get a chance for another attack. The stunning spells finally proved effective, depriving his limbs of their mobility. Sharon flinched when his body fell to the ground. And another time when someone came into contact with her injury.

"Fuck!"

Cursing, Charlie clenched his left hand to a fist. The other aimed with the wand at her burn, but failed to create a sufficiently strong healing spell. Sharon noticed with concern the unhealthy pallor on his face.

"Stupid…! So unbelievably stupid…!" He sank to one knee and sought her eyes. "Why did you come here? You are far too intelligent and peaceable for that. You were afraid, weren't you? Was it the alarm? Of course it was the alarm. I've said many times before that we need to change that. Shit, did it really have to come to that? Just why are you…"

While Charlie cursed, chided and treated her wound without taking a break, Sharon couldn't take her eyes off him. Maybe it was the intense situation. Maybe his obvious care. Perhaps even everything at once. But suddenly her view of him changed. It became different, but still remained the same. Sharon stared at him - and everything came together.

_I love him._

Surprised by her own realisation, the witch's breath faltered. Love? What? How? That wasn't supposed to happen. Love hadn't been on her list for quite a while now. It was impermanence. It was loss. It was pain.

Sharon swallowed. But then why did one look at the wizard suffice to wipe away all the negatives?

The witch spent the next few minutes in a state of deepest immersion. Striving to come to terms with her unexpected feelings. Several people prepared her and the other dragons for the return transport into the enclosures. During this time Charlie never left her side - much to the chagrin of her turbulent heart.

After her body had finally been hauled into a cage, the dragon keeper reached carelessly between the bars to stroke her. It felt familiar. Like a déjà vu.

"My brave Inimă," Charlie smiled - and something shattered inside of her.

It was wrong. This name was wrong. Everything about her was wrong. Sharon sensed an inner rebellion. As if there was a force that desperately longed to get out, but failed to do so.

Charlie's stroking hand froze.

"Your eyes… are turning green?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger! *haha, sorry*


	6. The truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the sixth chapter! The first half is done! ;D  
> Thank you so much for the reviews and kudos. They make me incredibly happy. 💛

Charlie Weasley had been a dragon keeper for several years by now. Therefore it was inevitable that - as with any other job - one experienced incidents, some of which were astonishing and others merely memorable. And the wizard had already witnessed quite a few strange events with dragons.

A male ridgeback, who turned out to be a female upon her arrival. A longhorn with hiccups, continuously drinking water to get rid of them. Dragon babies of different species, who started out as playmates and later turned into bitter enemies.

Charlie pulled his hand out of the cage. And now this. An opaleye with human-like behaviour capable of changing the colour of her eyes.

_Human… like?_

Suddenly it was as if a wave of freezing cold water had crashed over him once again. Conspicuities, that had previously made little or no sense, were now doing so. Like a web in his head, whose individual knots dissolved all of a sudden, revealing something that should have been visible to him all along.

Charlie kept eye contact for as long as he could. After only a few seconds the green wavered like a restless puddle and the remaining colours returned to the rainbow of her irises.

"Galloping gargoyles! That-"

A hand landed on his shoulder and pulled him back. Chunky, gray-haired fingers - Ciprian.

The reserve chief's facial expression seemed even stiffer than usual, while he put distance between them both and the cage. A difficult undertaking. Charlie resisted.

"Chief, Inimă is-"

"I saw it too," the other man interrupted. "No unnecessary commotion, Weasley. To your team healer first. Then we'll talk."

The older wizard guided them both across the clearing, past men and women whose wands spouted jets of water to eradicate the numerous fire sources. The extent of the blaze was worrying, but nothing they couldn't cope with.

Charlie hoped that the magical barriers were sufficient to conceal the clouds of smoke from the muggles. Otherwise, this once again meant the use of numerous memory charms and the spreading of a falsified explanation for the fire.

He didn't want to be in the shoes of the special unit right now. The obliviators could only implant a certain amount of lightnings, bonfires and deliberate arson in people's minds before someone would eventually become suspicious.

After a short walk, one of the many field hospitals that were quickly deployed during states of emergency came into view. From the outside it seemed small and inconspicuous, but inside there were long rows of camp beds and healers eagerly at work. Among them was Aaron, who headed towards them as soon as he spotted the two new arrivals.

"At last," he sighed and pointed to an empty bed further back. "Come on."

The blond man was not a big talker in general, but on duty this aspect became even more pronounced, causing him to issue mostly monosyllabic orders. Something that came in very handy for Charlie right now. Clear instructions helped his jumping thoughts to calm down a bit.

Ciprian patted him on the back.

"I'll wait outside."

"All right. I'll be quick."

Charlie began to move. As soon as he had settled on his assigned camp bed, a vial of red liquid was thrust into his hand. The best friend of a dragon keeper - blood-replenishing potions. The reserve always had enough in stock to supply an entire army.

"Drink," Aaron commanded. "Down to the last drop."

While Charlie obeyed the order, his arm was freed from the bloody clothes with a skilful severing charm and examined. Just a few more inches and the spike of the dragon's tail would have caused a far more serious injury.

"You are one lucky guy. Nothing broken."

Aaron raised his wand, mumbling. One wave cleaned the wound, the next closed it.

"Okay. Looks good." The arm was tentatively turned from one side to the other. "The usual procedure. Stretching. In the morning and evening. And no-"

"No overexertion. Got it. I will refrain from arm-wrestling."

"Charlie."

The admonition in the healer's eyes could not be missed. With a deep breath the dragon keeper jumped from the camp bed.

"I won't make any promises," he said and then added to change the subject, "How is Herbert? He's been brought here, hasn't he?"

The silence that followed his questions made a verbal answer unnecessary. When Aaron tilted his head to the side, his viewpoint could be followed to the back of the tent. There was a sheet stretched out in front of one of the camp beds, behind which two shadows busily engaged in healing.

Charlie swallowed. His hands clenched into fists.

"If I'd been quicker-"

"No."

"But someone else would have-"

"No."

His teammate stepped up to him to put one hand on his shoulder. To apply a little pressure to it. That's just the way Aaron was. And Charlie understood.

"Thank you."

The healer detached himself with a nod. Even before Charlie had reached the exit of the tent, his colleague was occupied with another injured person and his burns. Not for the first time, it became apparent that the healers were overstrained in states of emergency. Every year the reserve desperately searched for people who, firstly, had the necessary skills, secondly, were willing to take up a permanent residence, and thirdly, did not faint at the sight of fully-grown dragons and bitten off limbs. A combination that, unfortunately, could only be found in very few applicants. And hardly anyone was as distressed by this fact as the person waiting outside for Charlie.

"All right. Now to the actual problem," Ciprian said upon his arrival and scanned the surrounding area. The dragons, already sedated with sleeping draughts, were slumbering deeply in their cages. Whoever got close enough to them could hear humming sleeping noises. Soon they would be carted away.

"This conversation is best conducted somewhere more private - follow me."

"Merlin's beard… An animagus…"

Now that his suspicion had been confirmed, Charlie felt his strength leaving him. Stunned, he sank into the guest chair in the executive office, which he and Ciprian had entered not even a minute ago. It was a simple but respectable room with a sturdy desk and shelves full of documents on various concerns of the reserve. Dark wood wainscoting created an austere atmosphere that was dispelled by incident light during the day, but now accentuated by soft lamplight at night. Years ago Ciprian had arranged for the main premises to be equipped with what the muggles called electricity. A development that no doubt had to do with his wife, who grew up in a non-magical family.

"It is indeed an unprecedented situation," Ciprian replied. "An animagus being mistaken for a real dragon and accommodated in a reserve."

He turned to a painting that hung next to his desk.

"This wouldn't have happened in your day, would it, Harvey?"

A bald-headed, black-bearded man in a heavy attire made of dragon leather, nowadays no longer used because of its unwieldiness, crossed his scarred arms. Behind round glasses, his eyes flashed in a stern, observant manner. In the background of the painting one could see the well-known Carpathian mountains.

Harvey Ridgebit, the founder of the reserve. Charlie had never met him. He had been just a baby when the famous wizard drew his last breath.

"The reserve has indeed seen better days," the painting remarked. "But the young tend to forget the achievements of the past. For example, when I demonstrated that the capture of vipertooths is very well possible. Or just think of my cooperation with China, which brought us our first fireballs. I will never forget this success - and neither should you."

Ciprian and Charlie exchanged a quick glance with a secret smile lurking beneath. The wizard in the painting interrupted his self-praise, fetching a handkerchief to cough into.

"A dreamer I had been called, wishing to create a reserve that could house more than one or two dragon species! And look at the result today! The world's largest dragon sanctuary - dreamer, pah!"

With a shake of his head, he disappeared from the painting, briefly crossed the image of a landscape next to it and was eventually no longer to be seen. It was reasonable to suppose that he was not particularly eager to attend a conversation that might put his reserve in a bad light.

"All right," Ciprian grumbled, taking a seat behind his desk. "This situation with Inimă is without question an extraordinary one. I have to admit that I had a strange feeling about her from the outset. At first I thought she was just unusual for an opaleye. Not the first dragon to differ from the rest of its kind and teach us otherwise."

He leaned forward and laid his head on his crossed hands.

"But everything just went too smoothly with her. And when things are going too well in our line of work, it usually means something's up."

Charlie nodded affirmatively, but felt an uncomfortable gut feeling arising at the same time. It was comparable to the moment when one suddenly took a nosedive on a broom - as if the internal organs were unable to follow fast enough.

For several weeks, nearly every day, he had looked after her. Cared for her. Nourished her. Grown fond of her. And during all this time, that poor witch had been his prisoner.

"Good Godric…" the dragon keeper whispered and buried his face in both hands. How could he call himself a dragon expert when he had discovered her true nature at such a late stage? What did that say about him and his abilities?

"Chin up, Charles," Ciprian reassured him. "We all have to take responsibility for this mistake. What matters now is that we help this poor thing to transform back. Because apparently she can't do so on her own."

After this remark Charlie turned pale, as if he had to struggle with blood loss once again. When he started to stand up, his boss raised a hand.

"Don't act rashly. A few hours more or less won't make any difference now. Let her arrive in the enclosure first. As soon as things settle down, we'll go see her."

"But-"

"Do you even know the reversal spell?"

Charlie opened his mouth and closed it again. He shook his head.

"And shall the poor thing regain her true form in front of a bunch of gawking strangers?"

Silence. Another shake of the head.

"That's what I thought."

The older wizard leaned back in his chair and turned his gaze towards the window. In an hour or two the sun would rise to welcome a new day. Charlie hadn't been on his feet that long outside of night shifts for quite a while.

"We must not act hastily," Ciprian muttered determinedly. "In fact, the best thing would be if as few people as possible learned about this. Harvey may often exaggerate, but it's true that the reserve has seen better days."

With a sigh he looked at the empty painting on the wall. Suddenly his appearance seemed much older, almost invalidated.

"You know that there are enough people who would gladly make a big deal out of such an incident until all resources are taken away from us and the reserve can no longer persist. People who recognise more risks than benefits in dragons."

Charlie's face darkened. He knew that all too well indeed. Magical creatures had always had a difficult time in the wizarding world. Especially because of the potential threat they presented to the secrecy of magic. Numerous years and even more capable wizards and witches had been needed to reach the point where they were now - a state of acceptance. And it would require as many again to further this development and eliminate the remaining injustices.

Ciprian pulled out his wand and pointed with it at a file cabinet on his left.

" _Accio_ \- death certificate."

A drawer opened. Out of it flew a bright piece of parchment and landed in front of him on the desk.

"Well then. The best solution will be to declare the dragon Inimă dead. Death from internal injuries caused by the incident or a sudden infection. No big fuss. I'll think of something."

His way of speaking made him seem nonchalant, although he certainly did not intend this impression. Charlie swallowed. It was quite scary that such a big, conspicuous creature like a dragon could simply disappear traceless without too many questions, as long as the correct person provided the equally correctly-appearing explanations.

Ciprian raised his eyes and looked at the blood on Charlie's jacket, which had dried by now. Another piece of clothing for disposal. Even if the sleeve hadn't been torn off beyond repair, it was torture to remove blood from dragon hide if one failed to react immediately. The cleaning spell his mother had taught him at the first opportunity was a miracle remedy - but even miracles had their limits.

"Do me a favour and go home. Clean yourself up. Get some sleep," his chief told him. "Tired and unfocused you're no help to anyone."

Charlie pressed his lips together. He could not imagine getting even a wink of sleep after the previous events. Moreover, the thought of resting on a comfortable mattress while there was a woman - Merlin, maybe even a young girl! - who had to spend the night in the wild, trapped in another shape, disgusted him.

Ciprian leaned back in his chair with his arms folded.

"I can tell from your face that you want to do something right now."

"She is still my dragon," Charlie replied seriously. "It's my responsibility."

When he noticed by his clenched fists that his body was carrying a strong tension, he took a deep breath in and out to release it.

"I just need the reversal spell."

Ciprian nodded and bent down to reach a drawer at his desk.

"This spell isn't common practice. It usually doesn't come within the educational material taught at magical schools - with the exception of the Uagadou in Africa, perhaps," he explained and pulled out a strange, rectangular box which was mirrored on one side. "And why should it? Hardly anyone succeeds in transforming into an animagus and normally they can change back without any help - instinctively, so to speak."

"Does that mean… there's nothing we can do right now?" Charlie grabbed the edge of the table. "We _must_ do something!"

His thoughts jumped to the animagi he had already met in his life. If only he had shown more interest in the transformation into an animal and learned this reversal spell back then. A spell that Sirius and Remus had definitely mastered when he recalled the story involving Pettigrew in his brother's third year of school. Then, in one fell swoop, the current problem would have been gone.

Ciprian touched a button and the box in his hand came to life.

"The stress seems to make you forget that we are an international dragon reserve," he said with a hidden smile and lifted the item. "A mobile phone. Wonderful muggle invention. I still don't understand most of it, but my dear Tanya has taught me the essentials."

This praise was followed by a murmur about his incomprehension that she got startled every time his patronus, a powerful gorilla, appeared unexpectedly in front of her. Was the sudden sound of an annoying melody not just as bad - if not _worse_?

Charlie leaned forward to watch more closely how the other man started typing on the device. The object was so blinding that he wondered why muggles did such a thing to their eyes. Or their ears, he added, as his boss pressed it to his right one.

"Hekima. Ciprian here," sounded his greeting after a moment. "Yes, I know what time it is. I'm sorry. I wouldn't have called you unless it was urgent."

The following seconds were nothing else than that - seconds. But for Charlie, who could only think about the fact that Inimă must have arrived in her enclosure by now, they seemed to expand into endlessness. The chair under him suddenly appeared uncomfortable. The air in the room slightly stuffy.

"Mmm… You don't say…" he heard Ciprian answer at some point. "Yeah, a fish without water… Terrible situation… Hold on a second."

He pressed the muggle device against his chest.

"Family reunion a few years ago. One of his relatives got drunk and turned into his animagus form. Swordfish. Must have caused quite a commotion. Luckily, he changed back on his own, but after that, they made sure everyone could cast the reversal spell in case of need."

Ciprian resumed the conversation and shortly afterwards wrote down the formula and instructions for that very spell on a notepad. Thereafter he said goodbye to his acquaintance and tore off the note. When Charlie tried to grab it from him with an overzealous movement, the older wizard held his hand out of reach - admonishing.

"So far, only you and I know. But to ensure that the situation is handled as discreetly as possible, it would be advisable to bring your team into the loop as well. Especially Aaron. Have him monitor her medical condition."

The dragon keeper nodded and finally got hold of the note. Then he smiled involuntarily.

"I will take care of it. Even though you can't keep a secret from Jolina anyway. Especially not when Aaron is involved. Together we'll figure things out somehow."

At the last sentence, his boss lowered his eyes to the still unfilled, but soon-to-be forged death certificate.

"I hope so, Charles," he sighed. "I really hope so…"

A few minutes later, when Charlie followed the usual paths to Inimă's enclosure, he wished this whole day had never happened. Intruders. Raging dragons. Fire. Herbert. Green eyes.

Exhaling, he ran his hands over his face, ignoring the twinge in his arm where the dragon had hit him. On the outside there was fortunately nothing to see anymore, but the spot would continue to frustrate him for a little while longer. Likewise this whole animagus situation, for which he now had to shoulder responsibility.

 _Fuck_ , he thought, contrite. _Will that witch hate me because of this for the rest of her life?_

The dragon keeper kicked a stone away.

"Charlie!"

At the sound of his name he looked up - immediately surprised to find his team already at the designated meeting point. His patronus had only recently been sent. At least according to his internal clock. Unconsciously he must have been walking slower than usual.

Jolina looked slightly rattled. Her dark hair clung from the sweat the fire had produced.

"We came as fast as we could," she said upon his arrival and took a deep breath once, as if she was arming herself for a long dive. "Inimă - an animagus? Really?"

"I guess your inner eye didn't see that one coming, huh?" Charlie asked and returned the short greeting that Pedro and Aaron gave him.

Squinting her eyes slightly, the witch put her hands on her hips.

"You almost talk as if my affinity for divination makes me all-knowing."

"All-knowing or not…" Pedro laughed. "…that doesn't stop you from acting as if you were."

The sturdy wizard opened the door in the rock face, on whose other side the reason for their meeting was waiting. When Jolina passed him, he received a blow to his upper arm - and two glances that said: Your own fault.

Inside the enclosure, Charlie felt, as so often in the past, a feeling of admiration flaring up inside of him. His opaleye - he was probably not allowed to call her that anymore hereafter - had been placed on a plain whose even, grass-covered surface provided a comfortable lying position. Nacre emitted a bright glow. Like freshly fallen snow that knew how to conceal the true image of nature. Charlie pulled out his wand with a heavy heart. It was time to ring in the spring.

"Be careful," Aaron admonished and placed a hand on Jolina's shoulder who added: "The sleeping draught has probably already stopped working. Animagus or not. One little fright and this tail will make you fly."

"Don't worry. She's a deep sleeper. And the incident with Zoltán has exhausted her."

With deliberate steps, not unlike the moment of their first encounter, Charlie approached the dragon figure. About a metre in front of her he stopped - and sighed in relief. The wound inflicted by the fire of the horntail had completely disappeared. Someone must have cast a stronger healing spell after him.

Wordlessly, he allowed himself a short moment to look at her and silently bid farewell. She had become his preferred dragon in no time and that was saying something - because normally he didn't choose favourites.

"Real dragon or not… I'll miss you."

As prescribed, his wand aimed at her centre.

" _Bestia commutatio._ "

A bright, blue-white flash shot out - featuring a light against which the people present had to close their eyes due to the still ongoing darkness. When Charlie's blinded vision faded after multiple blinks, he realised that the body of the opaleye had begun to shrink. Smaller. Ever smaller. Until he became genuinely concerned that she would end up being a young girl. But fortunately this did not prove to be the case.

Charlie sank to his knees. Unexpectedly stripped of all strength. It was this reaction that made him recognise that there had been one last, untenable spark of hope that he had been wrong after all. But now the truth could no longer be denied. It was reality.

Behind him, his team started to move. Jolina asked for Pedro's jacket when she noticed the shabby, ragged condition of the unknown witch's clothes. Simultaneously, Aaron bent, wand raised, over her to check her condition. He rattled down an unusually long text in the tone of a dictating voice.

"No obvious injuries. The same healed scars as on her animagus form," he informed and swung his wand. The tip lit up red. "Malnutrition due to enforced carnivorousness over a long period of time."

The last sentence hit Charlie like a bludger to the midriff. He had given her no vegetables. Dragons didn't need them.

As soon as the medical examination was completed, Jolina carefully eased the slumbering witch's body fully into the jacket, although she appeared to be drowning in it given Pedro's enormous stature. As the latter lifted her body, Charlie felt new life return to him.

"No." Ponderously he stood up and stepped closer. " _I_ will carry her."

After a deep breath her figure was in his arms. For the first time, the wizard allowed himself to study her more closely. Soft features. Long, unruly hair with a deep darkness that caused him to pause. Unconsciously, he must have pictured something brighter like the pearlescent scales. And she looked small. So incredibly small and frail. But this impression was probably only created because she had previously possessed the imposing stature of a dragon.

Charlie carefully corrected her reclining position so that her head did not tip backwards. His arm twitched where the horntail had hit him.

"Too light…" he murmured. "Why aren't you heavier given the food I brought you every day? Even if it was just meat?"

Her breath hit his throat and produced goose bumps. She smelled like fire and forest. When the dragon keeper turned to the rest of his team, he met thoughtful faces.

"Okay, that just leaves the problem of accommodation," Pedro said, forcing a smile. "We can't bring her to the healing centre - that would raise too many questions and tomorrow everyone would know. There are just too many people coming and going."

Jolina crossed, head tilted, her arms over her chest.

"She should be safe at our house. At least for now," she suggested and threw a questioning glance at her partner, who nodded in agreement.

After this decision was out of the way, the group set itself in motion. Some faster, some slower. Slightly downhearted, Charlie looked at the enclosure, which suddenly seemed so much emptier than it had before it had been occupied. It almost escaped his notice how the witch in his arms began to move barely imperceptibly.

"…Charlie?"

The dragon keeper froze - and suddenly there were those eyes again. Without surrounding sources of fire, which had previously provided light, they now looked dark and only hinted at their green colour. The witch blinked. Her eyelids barely lifted before they fell down again.

"Am I… dreaming?"

Charlie swallowed hard. English. Her voice made her seem even more fragile.

"I…" Damn it. He didn't even know her name. "Everything's fine. Go back to sleep."

She showed the hint of a smile on her absent face. Then she nestled herself unthinkingly - with the naivety of an infant - against his chest. It was a reaction that Charlie instantly identified as a side effect of the sleeping draught. Certain herbs that were capable of putting a dragon into a state of relaxation were simply too strong for a human body.

For a long moment, he could only look at her. Feelings of guilt ached inside of him, opened his mouth and created whispered words. He had only one wish.

"Please don't hate me…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, Sharon is human again! And right in the middle of the story, which is kind of funny in my opinion. *haha*


	7. Human again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the seventh chapter! I wish you a wonderful weekend! :)

It was quiet. Too quiet. No birds greeting the morning. No breeze blowing past her ears. No roar of animal neighbours demanding their breakfast. And it was warm. Almost unbearable so.

Moaning, Sharon turned over on her stomach to stretch her wings to both sides as she did every morning. But instead she encountered a feeling of unexpected emptiness. Perplexed by the lack of weight on her back, the witch startled out of her half-sleep. In doing so, she underestimated her body mass, inadvertently used more strength than necessary and nearly fell off the bed.

_Hold on… A bed?_

Sharon observed her surroundings with bated breath. A room. No enclosure. The walls seemed terribly confining. Without realising it, she must have gotten used to the openness of nature.

Memories of last night returned to her mind. Of worry, fire and pain. Of her thoughtless escape, followed by an encounter with a raging horntail. And of her newfound feelings for the man who had lovingly cared for her over several weeks.

 _Charlie_ , the witch thought, chasing away the last bits of tiredness. _It was no dream. Charlie carried me. He… Oh Merlin, I'm human again._

Sluggishly, Sharon straightened herself. It took a while because the mechanics of her natural body had become alien to her. As she did so, a movement occurred next to her, whose cause she instantly fathomed by reflex - like a predator in the wilderness.

The witch gasped for breath. She was not alone as expected. There was another woman in the room.

"Excuse me, I…" Sharon started and stopped immediately. 

Irritated, the witch cleared her throat. Was that her voice? It sounded so strange in her ears. Not hoarse, as if she hadn't used it for ages - because that wasn't the case - but just strange. Far too high. There was no humming that went through her whole body. Not the slightest hint of a heat that could be turned into a fire.

Hesitantly, she reached for her neck, which was so much thinner than a dragon's, and noticed in the corners of her eyes that the other woman was imitating this movement. Sharon tilted her head - and her opposite mimicked this as well. It was only then that the moment of realisation occurred.

 _Blimey…_ The witch grimaced. _I look like hell._

Hectically, she tore herself from her reflection and rubbed the last remains of sleep out of her eyes. When her hands lowered themselves, she spotted a strange, dark line on her wrist. Sharon swallowed. Reluctantly, she pulled at the fabric of her pyjamas - light blue, long-sleeved, decorated with little snitches - and uncovered the skin beneath. With her lips pressed together she suppressed a sob. The dragon skin might have disappeared. But the scale-like scars had remained.

While Sharon was still trying to regain her composure, the door of the room opened. This time it was indeed another woman with warm eyes and an equally warm smile. By use of her wand, she balanced a tray in the air, on which different coloured potions were placed.

An "Oh!" escaped her lips when the two of them made eye contact. "You're finally awake, how wonderful."

And Sharon, who had only then recognised the woman and her voice, managed to make a strange first impression through one single word. It referred to the other witch's patronus.

"Parrot."

The following minutes made Sharon feel slightly overwhelmed. Although she had never had any trouble making new acquaintances before, the prolonged time that she had spent in almost complete seclusion had left its mark. But the female dragon keeper noticed this fact and reacted with understanding. Thus Sharon discovered, after the first embarrassing moment had passed and the two had introduced themselves - "Jolina. Never Jo. Never Lina." "Um, Sharon." - that they were currently in one of the numerous log cabins of the reserve.

It was located on a densely wooded hill, from which a few enclosures could be made out from afar by looking out the window. It was a beautiful piece of land that Jolina shared with her life partner, a healer named Aaron.

At some point the latter knocked timidly on the door when Sharon was in the process of drinking one of the potions the other witch had brought her. It was dark green and carried a label indicating that it contained a magical food supplement. Sharon had wisely covered her nose with one hand and swallowed the bitter, strong-smelling mixture in one go. Certainly there existed potions that were much more disgusting - skele-gro for example - but this one spread a numb, fur-like feeling. As if her insides had spontaneously decided to re-paper their walls.

Sharon tried not to screw up her face too much, while Aaron calmly explained what she had to do to regain her former strength and health. Most of it the witch had already thought of herself based on her prior knowledge, but she was nevertheless grateful for the help given to her.

"You must be hungry," Jolina said at one point, as her partner was busy measuring Sharon's vital signs with his wand and capturing them on a piece of parchment. "I'll bring you some food. These potions only help to a certain degree."

"Light food," Aaron reminded while scanning the results. When Jolina disappeared with a wave of her hand, Sharon felt the corners of her mouth twitch. It felt strange to smile. For so long, she had possessed sharp fangs, which made it impossible to do so.

"Afraid I might eat as much as a dragon and get sick?"

Aaron raised an eyebrow. Then he smiled as well.

"Something like that," he confirmed and tucked the parchment away. Sharon waited for a more detailed explanation, but instead, silence soaked the air. She had already noticed that the healer, unlike his partner, belonged to the more reserved type of people. A trait that Sharon usually coped with well, but which now made her uneasy. Surely her old composure would return soon, as long as she conducted enough conversations.

"You're American, aren't you?"

"Mhm… Pennsylvania."

Sharon nodded and smiled a bit more when a good topic of conversation came to her mind that she could pick up.

"Then you must have been at Ilvermorny just like me. Let me guess… Pukwudgie?"

The surprised face that followed her words told the witch that she had hit the mark.

"That's right." Aaron showed a nostalgic face. "And I suppose you were…"

"…a proud Thunderbird."

Sharon puffed herself up for the fun of it, succeeding in eliciting a soft laugh from her conversation partner. She couldn't have known this, but this connection between them made the healer unbend faster than he would have done otherwise. Jolina, who appeared shortly afterwards with the food, could hardly hide her surprise when she noticed that very fact upon entering the room.

"What I wouldn't give for some leaves from the snakewood tree right now. Those would certainly get me back on my feet in no time," Sharon just sighed and Aaron nodded in agreement.

Both were deeply immersed in the memories of their school days. Of four carvings, which sorted the pupils into different houses - Thunderbird, Pukwudgie, Horned Serpent and Wampus - just like at Hogwarts. Of abundantly set tables where students in cranberry red and ultramarine blue school capes happily dined and chatted. Of magical creatures like the Pukwudgies, who spread bad moods while working. And naturally the aforementioned snakewood tree, which stood outside the school and was famous for its healing powers as well as for having sprouted from the buried wand of Salazar Slytherin.

Jolina levitated a plate carrying slices of bread with jam and a generously filled, steaming teacup onto the bedside table. A fragrant scent spread through the air.

"I can't provide you with healing leaves, but this here should satisfy your first hunger and won't put too much strain on your stomach," she said with a warm smile.

Sharon thanked her and could not help but notice that the other witch had something motherly about her. And thus something nostalgic that could tighten one's throat.

Aaron put his hands on his thighs and stood up. 

"Well, we'll leave you alone so you can eat in peace."

After his remark, Sharon regarded the slices of bread next to her a little more closely - strawberry jam, a classic - and felt her mouth watering. But there was one thing nagging at her that she needed to get rid of first. An inescapable concern she couldn't help but give priority to.

"Wait, one more question." The witch swallowed briefly. "How… How's Charlie?"

It was the first time she uttered his name with her real voice. And it rolled off her lips as smoothly and melodiously as if they had been intended to pronounce it.

Aaron and Jolina exchanged a quick glance. Then they spoke at the same time - "Good." "As well as can be expected, given the circumstances." - and screwed up their faces within a narrow time frame. It would have been an amusing sight if the content of their words had not contributed to increase Sharon's concern even further.

Jolina recognised this, looked at her thoughtfully for a moment and finally showed a reassuring smile.

"He's on shift right now, but wanted to come here afterwards," she said, pointing to the bedside table. "Eat. You need your strength. Knowing Char, he'll be only too happy to help himself to anything you leave over."

Although the dragon keeper indeed had an enormous appetite - apparently it ran in the family - the last sentence was a joke of course. In fact, Charlie would have sat down next to her and made sure that every bite found its way into her mouth before organising food for himself, if necessary. His care was unparalleled - and this was something no longer just known to his family and colleagues.

Sharon let out an amused laugh, which then softened into a gentle smile. If he had already returned to work, then he seemed to be doing well enough and his injury was not as serious as the sight of it had first led her to believe.

Unknowingly, her positive reaction dispelled the last concerns that Charlie's team had felt. Not so long ago, the question had been raised of how Sharon would react after her awakening. They had expected a dragon-like outburst and instead received the complete opposite - an unexpected stroke of luck.

After Jolina and Aaron had left the room, Sharon turned to the bedside table. First hesitantly, then hastily in her movements, she grabbed one of the bread slices, nibbled at its corner, noticed the deliciously sweet taste - and finally gulped it down. She wished there had been another way of describing it, but she didn't want to sugarcoat anything. It simply tasted too good. So much so that her elation caused burning, tear-stained eyes.

When she took a deep sip of tea, she burned her tongue in her haste.

"Ah, damn it…!"

The witch caught her sight in the mirror next to the bed - and felt her head blush. But who could blame her? After countless weeks of self-roasted meat and sea water, bread with jam and tea looked like the finest delicacies to her.

After the first greed had subsided, Sharon tried to consume the second slice of bread and the remaining tea with more restraint. Every bite and every sip was sufficiently appreciated.

When she was finished with the delicious meal, it did not take long for a slight tiredness to take hold of her. Apparently her body still hadn't caught up on enough sleep after the events of the previous night. In addition to that, her sated stomach and the warm bed made Sharon feel completely comfortable for the first time in a while.

With a heaviness reminiscent of her dragon body, the witch sank into the mattress and closed her eyes. The sweetness on her tongue conjured up an image of fresh strawberries in her half-sleep, whose colour soon changed to a different shade of red. It was Charlie's red - now and probably forever.

When Sharon woke up after a while, the late afternoon had just begun. At least that's what Aaron told her, when he brought her another potion and a glass of water to get rid of the furry mouthfeel more quickly.

While she washed them both down with a contorted expression, the healer made a final check via magic before declaring with a satisfied nod that her body had absorbed the additives very well.

"Have you tried standing up?"

Sharon answered in the negative and tentatively bent her legs, transforming the blanket into a tent. She then laid them down again and rolled her shoulders with steady movements.

"Motor difficulties?" Aaron asked.

"No. Just weird." Sharon made her toes dance under the blanket. "As one feels after losing three tons from one second to the next."

In fact, the witch felt as if her bones had been filled with some helium. Carefully, she twisted herself free from the warming cloth and swung her legs out of the bed. Her overeager attempt was punished by her swaying and tipping backwards again.

"Without haste one finds the demiguise," Aaron said like a wise scholar and Sharon suppressed an annoyed sound. Her stubbornness made her stay on the ball and - just like in her dragon form once - she managed to maintain balance and body weight at the third try. But whereas Charlie had cheered, Aaron only rewarded her with a laudatory smile.

At the thought of the red-haired dragon keeper, the witch bit her lower lip. Apparently, he hadn't stopped by yet. Or maybe she had merely missed him. Merlin. Hopefully it was the first option.

"Do you have an explanation for why I couldn't change back?" Sharon asked to distract herself from her tense anticipation. 

"Well… I'm no expert on animagi."

"Neither am I - and I am one."

Smirking, the witch took a few trial steps while keeping her eyes on a spot on the wall. Almost like professional dancers, who did the same when performing pirouettes.

"Maybe…" Sharon started and stopped briefly. So far, she hadn't told anyone how all of this had happened. And neither Jolina nor Aaron had urged her to answer any questions yet. Sharon had to admit that she liked the current state of things. She was just being herself. An almost blank slate. The last time she had felt like this had been after her graduation and final return to England.

Sharon took a few more steps. Almost like a toddler, facing the world from a completely new perspective for the first time.

"Maybe there's a remedy to prevent an animagus from transforming back?" she finally asked and saw the healer frowning thoughtfully.

"If so, it is unknown to me. But there is a potion that has the opposite effect," Aaron replied and didn't speak further until he realised that he had to clarify his answer. He drew in a deep breath as if he was putting too much strain on his lungs with the following explanation.

"That potion is used on pregnant animagi to prevent them from transforming and harming their baby. Similar to the wolfsbane potion it has to be taken regularly. But only once a month, if I remember correctly."

Sharon nodded. She recollected that her father had once told her about it many years ago. The baby didn't possess the animagus power and was unable to adapt to the respective animal body. The potion served as a safety precaution to protect mother and child. Sharon shuddered at the thought of the consequences that might otherwise ensue, vowing that - if she ever got pregnant - she would keep a large supply of the potion.

For a moment a specific image flashed in the witch's mind. Of a small child with red hair, freckles and green eyes. She hastily chased it away and rubbed her temples, muttering. Too soon. Definitely too soon.

"Perhaps your transformation blockage had another cause," Aaron remarked as he watched her self-reprimand. "Stress, for example."

Sharon laughed half-heartedly.

"Believe me, I've been in far more stressful situations than-"

"I'm not necessarily talking about new stress," Aaron interrupted. Then he smiled apologetically. "You wouldn't be the first person to take a break in your animagus form. Some things are easier to handle as an animal. When was the last time you were a dragon? Before all this, of course."

Sharon averted her eyes and looked at the desk calendar. Inwardly, she counted back the days, weeks, months.

"An eternity ago," she finally confessed and instantly joked: "It's not exactly easy to turn into a giant fire-breathing creature in London."

 _We have already experienced what happens then_ , Sharon almost added. She thought back to the incident in Diagon Alley, when a dragon had broken out of Gringotts and reclaimed its freedom. Panic and screams had gone hand in hand back then. And Sharon, who had only been looking for a magical cream against dark eye circles, was allowed to witness firsthand what would happen if she ever revealed her other form to the public.

The witch lowered her eyes, only to look up again in the next second. Someone had knocked. Her heart leapt. And for good reason: Aaron was sitting next to her. And Jolina simply walked in.

Reflexively, she threw a glance at the mirror to check her appearance. There wasn't much she could do without her wand, but at least she could make herself a little bit more presentable.

Aaron noted silently how she untied a few knots left over from sleep. As well as the disappointment that flitted across her face after the door was opened. Sharon's hope had been raised in vain. It was a man who entered - but not the one whose presence she longed for.

It turned out to be an older wizard with a greying full beard and an authoritarian attitude that could not be overlooked. Aaron greeted him and gave the witch a short, reassuring smile before he left the room.

"Ciprian Dascălu." A mighty hand was extended to Sharon, which she immediately grasped. "Acting head of the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary."

After she had introduced herself, the man took a heavy breath and sat down on the chair that had previously been occupied by Aaron.

"Well, Ms. Apley," he said, and to Sharon it sounded like the beginning of a test. "There is much to discuss."

The head of the reserve and she had a long conversation, which provided both sides with important information. For example, Sharon told for the first time how she had ended up in her precarious situation, while Ciprian informed her of the reason why she had not been accommodated in the reserve's official healing facility.

It came as no surprise to the witch to hear of the concern that the reputation of this place could be damaged and the trust in its employees diminished if her experience became public. After all, magical creatures, especially the dangerous kind, still had a tough position in society - and thus also the habitats that housed them.

"My stay here has no relevance whatsoever to my former mission," Sharon said at the end. "Therefore, I will not have to answer to the Wizengamot in this regard, should a statement be required. My resignation was already cut and dried anyway - firmly decided, I mean - so this shouldn't be a problem."

The corners of Ciprian's mouth had briefly twitched at the muggle phrase. His shoulders slumped slightly as the last bit of tension left him.

"Thank you, that's an enormous relief. Not only for me, but for the whole reserve," he said and allowed a moment of silence to pass. "If you like, I can arrange a portkey that will take you home as soon as pos-"

" _No!_ "

Sharon, who suddenly sat up as straight as a ramrod, had taken both the older wizard and herself by surprise with her exclamation. This offer, which any other person would have normally accepted with pleasure, had the opposite effect on her. Portkey meant departure. Departure meant farewell. And there was someone she hadn't even said a proper hello to yet.

"No," the witch repeated more calmly. "I don't feel ready for that yet."

Eyes watched her as if she were a closed book. If the wizard had thought before their conversation that the confusion and fascination which he had felt towards her dragon form would vanish, he found himself proven wrong now.

"Very well. Of course I will respect that," Ciprian finally said. "Would you mind if I borrowed your wrist for a moment?"

Surprised, Sharon obediently held out her arm. The wizard pulled out his wand and muttered a soft phrase, whereupon a yellow ribbon appeared. Like a small snake whose head bit into its own tail.

"There. This identifies you as a temporary visitor to the reservation. Should anyone become nosy and ask too many questions, just mention my name. That should be enough."

Sharon nodded and touched the ribbon, which was made of strengthened paper and reminded her of trips to the swimming pool in her childhood.

"By the way, you can always visit our owlery and send a letter," Ciprian added. "Otherwise, I also keep a muggle mobile phone in my office which I could put at your disposal."

At the last sentence Sharon lifted her gaze in surprise.

"Oh, I didn't know the word muggle is commonly used here as well."

Ciprian shook his head slightly.

"Not really," he corrected. "We Romanians usually use the term _încuiați_. But I have made a habit of adapting to my conversation partner in this regard. In an international working environment, certain terms become familiar sooner or later all by themselves."

He shrugged his shoulders as if it was no big deal and then got up. His time was up. As much as he would have loved to talk to the young woman further - if only because of her transformation ability which could captivate any dragon lover - his presence was requested at the headquarters for an important meeting.

"I bid you farewell, for now, Ms. Apley. Don't hesitate to contact me if you need anything."

"Thank you. I appreciate that."

After the conversation with the head of the reserve, Sharon indulged in something she had been dreaming of for a long time - a hot shower.

The water had a revitalising effect and helped her organise the countless thoughts in her head. She would write one - no, better two - letters. To the Ministry and her family's clinic. Considering the length of time it would take to deliver a letter from Romania to England, this should give her some time until certain obligations would force her to return to her old life.

Sharon soaped her body without looking at it too closely. The sight of her scarred skin was still too much for the moment. A concealment charm could have remedied this, but on the one hand she had forgotten how it worked and on the other hand there was her damned pride that kept her from asking someone for help.

Sharon leaned her forehead against the cool tiles of the shower wall. Not for the first time, she became painfully aware of the absence of her wand - almost like an amputated body part that pretended to still be there.

The witch sighed. While a scent of honey and milk caressed her nose, her thoughts jumped to the next step. A step that concerned a certain redheaded dragon keeper. A dragon keeper who owned her heart even though she hadn't even had a real conversation with him.

Sharon held her face towards the shower spray. The tiny drops were like a massage that knew exactly where her tension lay.

At home, in her current situation, the witch would have simply grabbed her mobile phone and called the person who was the best at dealing with emotions. Her closest friend - Andrea. But this option was - despite Ciprian's offer - not available.

"Why don't I know her number by heart?" Sharon whined, rubbing her temples. In her head, different digits were buzzing around until she gave up this search and took on another one. Many times in the past, her friend had given her advice. Especially in matters of relationships.

 _Sharon_ , she heard Andrea say in one of her memories. Her voice so serious, as if she wanted to deform metal with it. _You're a dragon. A strong, magnificent woman. And if he doesn't see that, then he doesn't deserve you._

Sharon turned off the shower. Along with the excess water on the floor, her last doubts vanished down the drain. She nodded to herself.

_I am a dragon._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, go get him, Sharon! xD


	8. Enclosure 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the chapter that all of you have been waiting for (at least I think so, lol). Enjoy! 💛

_Merlin. It's even more beautiful than I imagined._

With the eyes of a child strolling through a funfair for the first time, Sharon followed a trail through the scenery of the reserve. To her left, cedars towered up like mighty giants. To her right a valley stretched out in which scattered dragons flew through the sky in their spacious enclosures. For the first time, the witch could view everything from the other side - and it was magnificent.

After her shower, Sharon had made the decision to not wait any longer for Charlie and thus escaping the habit of passivity that she had fallen into. Jolina had provided her with clothes, which, thanks to an adjustment spell, fitted her slightly smaller body perfectly. Or at least almost.

Sharon pulled a face when she jumped over a high root in her hiking boots and felt a tension in her chest area.

 _Breasts are heavier than expected when you didn't have to carry their weight for a while_ , she thought and rolled her shoulders while walking. Undecided about whether she had missed wearing a bra or not.

After a walk of about half an hour, which she had to interrupt from time to time as soon as her legs started to feel like jelly, the witch reached the centre of the reserve. There, an elderly woman, who was currently transporting a batch of cauldrons, showed her the way to the local owlery - a cylindrical brick building with numerous round, glassless windows.

Here Sharon took out her prepared letters. One addressed to the Ministry and the other to her clinic, whereas the first one also contained a few personal lines to Andrea.

"Okay, here we go," the witch said to herself and smiled when an owl at the entrance uttered an apparently approving "Hoo-hoo!".

Thoroughly, she studied her surroundings and avoided animal excrement on the straw-covered ground while walking. This went on until she believed to have found the oldest and most fragile bird of them all. It was a scops owl, whose bark-coloured plumage resembled a feather duster that had been used for many years. When Sharon tied the letters to her, she jumped out of her half-sleep. Her gaze appeared to call out in near panic: _Me? Are you sure?_

Sharon nodded encouragingly at her.

"Don't worry, you've got this," she whispered. "Take as much time as you need and have regular breaks, okay? I'm in no hurry for those letters to arrive."

Once the owl had set out on her journey, the witch left the owlery to head for her next destination. With an excitement that began in her stomach and spread from there to every pore of her body. One thing she hadn't missed: sweating. More precisely, the repulsive feeling when moisture collected in the neck and on the palms of one's hands. Cold-blooded creatures such as dragons were not affected by this, because they were able to adjust their body temperature to the external circumstances at any time.

_What's it gonna be like once he stands in front of me?_

Head shaking, Sharon wiped her hands on her trousers. She knew from Jolina that according to the work schedule, Charlie had been assigned to the nursery station, where the care of rejected eggs and baby dragons was on the agenda. But once on site she found out that he had swapped his shift with another dragon keeper and wouldn't be stationed there until tomorrow. When, for her sake, a patronus was sent out to learn his whereabouts, no response came back for a long time. Something that aroused both confusion and impatience within the witch.

By the time Charlie's answer finally reached her - "Enclosure 32." - Sharon had almost made the decision to continue her search in a haphazard way.

"Enclosure 32?" she repeated, asking for directions in the subtext. Her helper's face - dragonologist, very young, with friendly eyes - suddenly turned pale.

"Oh geez, maybe… um… you'd rather see him at another time." He grabbed the back of his neck as if something was stinging him there. "Heard about it myself only a little while ago, but… apparently he lost a dragon in the commotion last night. Beautiful opaleye. Must have hit him hard… uh, like _really_ hard."

Sharon felt a sudden pressure in her chest but limited her response to a nod of understanding. With a thank you on her lips, she said goodbye, but not without learning the directions first. The witch took a deep breath in and out.

Enclosure 32 - Inimă's former home.

Some time later, when Sharon found herself outside of the enclosure, her lips tugged into a wry smile. It didn't lack a certain irony that her meeting with the dragon keeper would happen at the very place where the two had spent so much time together. This had been their beginning. She hoped it wouldn't be the end.

Sharon was surprised but relieved that she didn't need any keys or spells to gain access. Either Charlie had accidentally left the door unlocked or uninhabited enclosures were always accessible.

Inside a pleasant breeze was blowing, which she had not noticed on the outside. It was also a good deal warmer, adding natural sweat to the one of her excitement.

Charlie stood with his back to her at the edge of the lake. Now and then he bent down to pick up a stone, which he then flicked across the surface of the water. Sharon approached with leisurely steps, although her heart went into a sprint.

_How do you talk to someone you love but who doesn't know anything about you?_

Sharon swallowed. This scene was reminiscent of a meeting with a close person who suffered from amnesia and had lost all memories of their time together. And she had to reluctantly confess: It was frightening.

When there was only a short distance - maybe a metre - left between them, Sharon stopped and opened her mouth. But no sound escaped her lips.

She would have liked to call him by his first name, but didn't know if that would be too familiar. And Mr. Weasley sounded wrong in her ears as well. Therefore, Sharon raised a fist to her mouth and cleared her throat.

At first, Charlie showed no reaction - then he sighed. And the witch realised that he must have already noticed her presence. His senses should not be underestimated.

In her head she went through the possible ways of entering into conversation, which she had previously thought up, but had to admit that not a single one of them really appealed to her anymore. So the new strategy was: improvisation.

"Your arm seems to have recovered," Sharon said, taking another step forward. "The reserve has good healers."

Charlie nodded and threw another stone. Three jumps.

"The best," he finally said. "Something that apparently cannot be said for the dragon keepers. At least not this one."

Finally, the wizard turned around and Sharon felt as if her soul had screamed when she noticed his tired features. Even without asking, this sight made it clear that, unlike her, he hadn't caught up on sleep.

"I'm sorry I haven't dropped by earlier and you had to…" His voice died away and he ran his hand through his hair. "I needed some time for myself to process everything."

In the light of these words, Sharon realised the guilt the wizard carried within him. His sensitivity, which belonged to his greatest strengths, particularly during his work with magical creatures, now showed its downside.

"Did it help?" Sharon asked quietly and received a shake of the head.

"Not really."

A moment of silence passed, to which the witch granted no extension. This is not what she had come for. They could do better than that.

"If you like, we could pretend for a moment that we are meeting for the first time?" she suggested, playing with the visitor ribbon on her wrist.

Charlie nodded with some relief. 

"That would be nice."

When he bestowed a first smile on her, it made Sharon's heart jump like one of the stones. Both of them simultaneously reduced the distance between them and offered a hand. The witch could not help but notice how strong the contrast between their bodies was. From a human perspective, Charlie's stature appeared much more imposing. The mere thought of what these strong arms were capable of doing sent warmth through her body.

"Sharon Apley."

"Charles Weasley. But please call me Charlie."

The two shook hands. Sharon felt the burn blisters on his skin and imagined what this roughness would feel like in contact with other parts of her body. Holding her breath, the witch detached herself from him and turned to the lake, fearing that he might otherwise read her feelings in her eyes.

On the shore she bent down in search of a flat stone until Charlie tapped her and handed her one. As if they were children again, just getting to know each other. Sharon gratefully accepted it, set her trajectory and flicked it. One jump. Oh Merlin. Had she always been this bad?

Next to her, the dragon keeper had to laugh softly and didn't even stop when she looked at him with her eyes half squeezed together.

"That was my first try," Sharon justified herself and grabbed the first flat stone she found on the ground. Charlie joined her.

This way the two of them passed the time for a while and made casual small talk in which the words dragon, animagus or the like were never spoken, not even once. However, at some point they ventured into this terrain of conversation, which could not be ignored forever. And Charlie was the one who started it.

"I just can't believe I didn't realise it sooner," he confessed after Sharon had cheered her record of six stone jumps. "I mean… all this… Merlin's beard - what kind of dragon keeper am I?"

His whole posture suggested that they had reached a crucial point of his inner turmoil. Sharon sat down on the rock - his favourite spot in the enclosure - and patted the place beside her.

"What kind of dragon keeper?" she repeated when he had followed up the request. "One who helped a dragon in distress until she was well again."

Impulsively, the witch placed a hand on his scarred arm and immediately pulled it back when he flinched at the contact. Her chest stung at this reaction, which she could not even attribute to his previous injury. It had been his healthy arm.

With a gentle clearing of her throat, Sharon crossed her hands on a bent knee.

"That reminds me…" she said after a moment, seeking his gaze. "I haven't thanked you yet."

Charlie's face showed a mask of disbelief. In fact, he looked at her as if she had revealed to him that it was all just a joke and that any moment the real Inimă would fly past with pearlescent wings in the sky.

"What for? That I didn't realise what you really are in forever? That you were held here as a result? That I…" His eyes widened in horror when he remembered something decisive. "Fuck… I fed you dead chickens and sheep… a bloody bear!"

While he buried his head in his hands, Sharon tilted her own. She nodded to herself. She'd rather forget that memory too.

"If it makes you feel any better… The chickens weren't half bad?"

"Are you serious?"

Charlie had jerked up and was now staring at her as steadfastly as he had done when she was still a dragon. As if he could see straight into her heart. The very heart that was now contracting and beating faster all of a sudden.

"No, not really…" Sharon confessed with a smile. "But your presence made the whole thing bearable. And isn't it said that good company makes the food taste better?"

"Then I must have been the host of the century."

He shook his head and looked, arms crossed, up into the sky, which had become slightly darker in the meantime. Some clouds had gathered. Inside the enclosures the temperature and weather were regulated by magic, causing people to frequently forget what the outside conditions were like.

A few years ago, when Charlie had still been a new-fledged dragon keeper, he had once spent the whole day with a sick sandbelly during the deepest winter. Dragons of this kind came from Egypt and were used to hot days in the desert, where they remained unnoticed thanks to their colouring and small size. Back then, when Charlie had left the enclosure tired and sweaty, he had first been surprised by a heavy snowfall and later by a flu.

"If anyone should say thank you, it's me," the wizard said after a moment of silence. "After all, you protected me from a rampaging dragon."

"Well… There was the risk of losing the hand that feeds me," Sharon joked, daring to nudge him slightly with the shoulder. "Naturally, I couldn't let that happen - despite all the chickens, sheep and a bear."

But this repetition of his words, which had been meant humorously, missed its intended effect. Charlie took a deep breath and left his spot to stand before her. When he grabbed her clasped hands to take them into his, the witch's heartbeat accelerated once again.

"I'm so sorry," he emphatically said for the first time. "I don't know how I can make this up to you. A different dragon keeper would certainly have-"

"Stop. Cut that out right now."

Sharon felt heat building up inside her and pulled her hands out of his just to grab them herself.

"I'm gonna say this once in all clarity and then we'll put this behind us, okay?"

She waited for no answer and continued speaking immediately. Each word was given sufficient emphasis to make her position clear.

"You are not to blame. You were just doing your job. And in a fantastic way, considering I can walk again and haven't gone nuts… Your chatting has kept me sane."

Sharon squeezed his caring hands; marked from hard work. In her mind, she stroked his cheeks. In her mind, she kissed him. In her mind, he kissed her back.

"So thank you," she said insistently. "Thank you very much for being there for me and nursing me back to health."

The eye contact between them lasted - the thunderbird in the face of the lion - until the wizard breathed deeply and accepted her gratitude with a nod. Delighted to have emerged victorious from this situation, Sharon let him go. But her cheerfulness didn't last long. Charlie's brow furrowed.

"There's something in your hair."

"What?"

Sharon's hand flew up reflexively, but was stopped in an instant before it could reach its destination. Her breath faltered as the wizard moved closer and carefully fumbled for something in her dark strands. Too close. The last time his scent had struck her so intensely, she had been a dragon. Now everything was different. For her human body reacted much more strongly to his closeness - with longing and desire.

"A dragonfly. The dragon among the insects." Charlie winked and released the bluish animal into freedom. "A friend of yours?"

The witch combed through her hair with her fingers and noticed how his eyes followed this movement.

"Yes, I love to carry small animals around with me in this fashion," she replied cheekily. "Who needs hair accessories?"

"Well, you certainly don't."

After this unexpected compliment, which Sharon deciphered only after three heartbeats, the dragon keeper leaned next to her against the rock. That was when the witch remembered how he had once casually mentioned that he had a weakness for dark hair. Smiling, she wrapped a long strand around her finger. Never before in her life had she felt so happy about her natural hair colour than now.

In the cracks of the cloud cover the end of the day was heralded. Another sunset, that they watched together. Somehow the same and yet different. After a while of silence Charlie raised his voice.

"What's it like?"

"Huh?"

"To be a dragon?"

Sharon laughed softly. There he was. The man who had stolen her heart.

"Simply indescribable."

Sharon and Charlie had continued to talk for quite a while afterwards. And probably even longer if it hadn't become too late. Both found it easy to converse with each other. Like an instinct they had acquired despite the lengthy language barrier.

When Charlie asked if he could accompany her back to Jolina and Aaron's cabin, the witch immediately agreed. For one thing, this meant that their togetherness would last a little bit longer. Secondly, she wasn't sure if she would be able to find her way back on her own in the dark.

So it happened that after a long walk, the two of them found themselves on the forest path that Sharon had taken alone just a few hours ago. A light drizzle, which had recently set in, trickled through the scattered gaps in the canopy of leaves, wherefore Charlie held a transparent magical umbrella protectively over their heads with his wand. Time and again their bodies bumped against each other. Especially when the witch decorated her words with gestures while speaking.

"…and then all the cabinets tipped over one by one." Sharon imitated a fall process and its sounds. "Andrea looked at me and - this I'll never forget - said completely dryly: We two are a disaster. The best start for a friendship."

It felt good to laugh - to laugh with her human body. This emotion helped her to feel at home in her normal skin again.

Charlie smiled. The way she slapped a hand on her chest, expressing her joy with all her heart, made every other reaction seem wrong.

"This reminds me of an old friend of mine…" he said, thinking of a certain metamorphmagus and former Hufflepuff, who had got into quite a lot of trouble during and after their time together at school. Charlie was sure that the witch next to him must have known Tonks at least by sight. After all, both had been aurors at the same time. But he didn't want to dig into the bittersweet past yet again and instead gave way to the hard-won present.

"By the way, my brother and his best friend started their auror training not so long ago," the dragon keeper therefore said and at the question in his eyes, Sharon shook her head.

"Unfortunately, I've never met them. The training takes place in another Ministry complex. There, the trainees also have direct access to larger rooms for the practical training. Such as dueling, for example."

She rolled her shoulders as if her back was hurting all of a sudden.

"The last few months before my stay here, I spent most of my time behind a desk. Not exactly thrilling, but harmless and therefore safe."

Nodding his head, Charlie directed them both a little to the left in order to avoid an obstacle in the shape of a thick tree root. This trivial matter clearly showed how much he must have internalised this path.

"Excuse me, but that doesn't sound like something I would expect from someone who can turn into a dragon."

_Yes, because our animal forms make us so transparent._

Sharon rolled her eyes with a smile. Something she could finally do again as a human.

_Dragon animagi like to play with fire. Bear animagi hibernate. I guess monkey animagi are good climbers by nature then as well, huh?_

Charlie raised an eyebrow and only then did the witch realise that she had spoken her thoughts out loud. Her natural directness had apparently reached a new level.

"Are you always this sarcastic?" the dragon keeper asked with an amused undertone, holding the umbrella further in her direction, even though this exposed his left arm to the rain. In the distance, one could already make out the outlines of his team colleagues' cabin. The illuminated windows resembled square stars in the firmament.

"Sorry," Sharon said, embarrassed. "I'll have to relearn how to use my inner voice in your presence. For a long time, there was no need for that."

Charlie raised first one, then both eyebrows.

"Do I want to know all the things you've thrown at my head?"

"Not really," she confessed, hiding a grin behind her hand. "But if anyone asks, everything was good."

And for the first time in what felt like an eternity, Charlie let out a laugh that seemed to come from deep within his belly, causing the umbrella to shake. This answer reminded him so much of his twin brothers that he couldn't help it. Sharon joined in his laughter.

In this cheerful mood, which stood in stark contrast to the rainy weather, the two reached their destination. Under the canopy, the wizard made the umbrella disappear and dried his arm with a quick spell. In Sharon's chest swirled warmth as if from a tiny campfire.

"Thank you for bringing me," she said, unconsciously stepping closer. "I'd invite you in for a cup of tea, but…" A smile. "…unfortunately, the cabin doesn't belong to me."

Charlie put the wand away and winked while making a gesture of refusal.

"It's okay. Those two and Pedro have already enough of me as it is."

"Hm, I have no idea why," Sharon replied sincerely and turned to a white upholstered swing bench to sit on it. Her legs felt heavy from all the walking.

In doing so, she missed something crucial - the moment when her answer conjured a glowing in Charlie's eyes. This outspoken, open manner impressed him. Very much in fact.

His gaze must have lasted too long, because the witch tilted her head. 

"What?" she asked amusedly. "Is there something in my hair again?"

Charlie watched the change on her face. She had the most expressive eyebrows he had ever seen. By that he didn't necessarily mean their thickness and blackness, but the way they seemed to be part of every facial expression. There were people who had hardly any movement on this part of their face. Ciprian was a good example in that respect. But in the case of this witch, the two curved lines danced with every emotion she felt. It was fascinating.

"Uh, no," he finally said, looking toward the forest. "But I'd better get going."

"Oh."

Sharon nodded in understanding. Inwardly, she rummaged for possibilities of how she could see him again soon and thereby deepen their relationship. But surprisingly, Charlie beat her to it.

"I know you think I'm not at fault regarding this whole… _situation_ , but…"

The witch started to open her mouth for a contradiction, at which the wizard shook his head.

"…but I still want to make amends. And I've been thinking that the impression you've gained so far of the reserve has not been the best. Aside from today."

Sharon rested her arm on the swing rest and leaned her cheek into the palm of her hand. There was a tingling sensation in her as she realised what the following conversation would lead to.

"It was indeed very one-sided."

"Right…" Charlie cleared his throat. "So if you're up for it… how about a tour tomorrow?"

Just in time the witch was able to suppress her impulsiveness and keep herself from throwing a loud yes at him. 

"Do you have time for that?" she asked with a smile instead. "My source told me you have at least one task tomorrow that was supposed to be today."

"Shit, right." Charlie slapped his forehead. He had almost forgotten that. "But apart from that, I have nothing to do tomorrow. Is there anything in particular you're interested in? A breed of dragon, for example?"

When Sharon laughed, dimples appeared on her cheeks.

"Is this a trick question?" she replied. After all, an offer like that wasn't something you got every day. Especially not from a gorgeous wizard to whom you felt both mental and physical attraction. "If possible, I want to see _everything_."

Unconsciously and therefore without any intention, her gaze lowered a little bit to his upper body, which she had already had the pleasure of admiring in its bared form once before. And for the second time a glowing strayed into Charlie's eyes. But the moment was already over by the time she looked up again.

"Okay, deal," he said and the witch shouted with glee on the inside. "But in that case, I guess we'll have to split the tour up over a few days."

"Mmm, sounds good."

After the two had arranged the time and place for their meeting tomorrow, Charlie let an umbrella sprout from his wand again and said goodbye with one last smile.

Sharon turned her upper body and bedded her crossed arms on the porch fence to gaze after him. Sighing happily. This day together had once again confirmed her feelings and strengthened her desire to win this man's heart.

_The question remains, how…_

Not far from the absentminded witch there was another person who had followed the previous conversation with utmost attention. Jolina, who had cast an eavesdropping spell a while ago, pressed her ear against the wood of the door on the inside of the hut.

When Aaron passed her with a glass of water and heard her murmuring something - "Mighty Heka." -, he raised one eyebrow. His partner straightened. Stunned, she pressed a hand against her mouth and then dropped it.

"It's her." A break. "She's the one who… My prediction about Charlie's… Damn it, she's…"

"…Charlie's Queen of Hearts," Aaron finished with a shrug.

For a moment, the couple looked at each other and communicated silently. Then they exchanged smiles. A sparkle crept into the healer's eyes that most people would have missed, but his witch immediately noticed.

"You won't let him forget this."

"Never."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, they finally talked! Was it worth the wait? I would love to hear your opinion. ;D


	9. Between baby dragons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is one of my favourite chapters with a little surprise for [moonfairy13](https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonfairy13/pseuds/moonfairy13). 💛

Four days went by. Four wonderful days during which Sharon was introduced to the multifaceted world of dragons. And if she had been asked to name a favourite moment, she would have found that very difficult indeed. There were just too many:

Young ridgebacks who played catch, chasing each other's tails. A pair of longhorns who showed their offspring how to properly sharpen their golden horns. Ironbellies who rested in the sun after a sumptuous meal as an aid to digestion.

Sharon was in paradise. And with the best company a person could ask for.

Charlie's head represented a treasure chest of knowledge. For every question regarding the dragons, he had an answer at hand. But Sharon wasn't at a loss for words either - though in a slightly different way.

Without restraint she flirted with the wizard when the opportunity arose. So far, her greatest success had been on the second day of the tour, when the two of them had visited the broom depot. Because no matter how one looked at it, the reserve was huge and therefore best explored by air.

"As a dragon you can fly by nature. But how good are you on a broom?" Charlie had asked and simultaneously showed her different models.

A question which had immediately made Sharon, whose approaches had been rather subtle until then, very attentive. A suggestive smile had appeared on her face.

"I can't complain. But I have been told that occasionally I tend to have a very… _dominant_ riding style."

With a wink, she had then chosen a broom - a solid comet - and left the depot. On her back the smouldering look of a dragon keeper, whose speechlessness was the best proof of the fact that he had understood her correctly and envisioned that very erotic image.

After this memorable moment, Charlie had become more daring as well. Which in his case was expressed by gentle touches on her back and arms, but also quick-witted answers to her ambiguous sentences.

The air between them crackled with tense anticipation. It was like the moment of the gradual ascent on a roller coaster ride just before the dive into the depth. And although Sharon was not the most patient person in the world - in fact the opposite - it was precisely what she considered exciting.

But nothing lasted forever.

On the morning of the fifth day, Sharon received a letter that brought her time on the reserve to an abrupt end. It was from the Ministry and requested her imminent return to London. How _imminent_ the witch realised when she reached the lines that pointed out that she would be informed once the reserve had obtained the correct portkey. Apparently, her testimony concerning the smuggling case represented a crucial component that would bring her former mission to a final closure.

 _Not even a "How are you?" or a "How nice that you're still alive."_ , Sharon thought, crumpling the parchment before reluctantly smoothing it out again. If her resignation as an auror hadn't already been executed a long time ago, she would have handed it in no later than now.

The witch brought the owl some treats as a reward for the long flight and then stared at the letter. If she had been in her dragon form she would have already burned it to ashes.

"That's not fair…" she whispered, thinking of the farewell that would inevitably ensue. Not just from Charlie, but from this dreamlike place that had crept into her heart.

Consequently, her mood was gloomy when not long afterwards she continued her tour with the dragon keeper and the two headed off to the reserve's upper mountain regions by broom.

Of course Charlie noticed that she was unusually quiet by her standards. But when his enquiry caused only a brief shake of the head and a sad smile, he decided not to probe any further. It was important to have the ability to remain silent at the right moment. The witch would talk to him when she was ready. He already knew her that well.

After they had flown for a while, Charlie gave a short signal that it was time to land. The two of them stowed their brooms inside a hollow tree before setting off on a short hike to an even higher level. Here the air was thinner and clearer. Sharon took a deep breath and felt as if her lungs had undergone a spring cleaning.

At Charlie's side she took cover behind a large rock. With his finger he pointed to a nearby gigantic nest before casting a disillusionment spell on them both. Their bodies fused with their surroundings like watercolours.

"Oskar - an Alpine stonebreaker…" the wizard whispered when a greyish dragon the size of a minibus appeared. "He's been working on this nest for a month by now…"

Deliberately, the witch moved her body closer to his. Under her feet the earth trembled with every dragon step.

"That's what I call diligent. Or is that the norm?"

In reply, Charlie showed a barely noticeable smile, without turning his eyes away from the toiling dragon, who moved trunks and rocks. Almost like an artist who was busy with an abstract building project.

"No, it's love," he answered and sighed. "I hope his mate will like it. This year's competition is pretty tou-"

A loud roar interrupted him and caused Sharon to flinch. With lightning-fast reflexes, the dragon keeper raised his wand and encased her body protectively with his own. When his chest pressed itself so unexpectedly against her back, one arm wrapped around her middle, the witch took a stagnant breath. The contact between them was so tight that she could feel his heartbeat against her shoulder blade. Like a hammer of adrenaline.

_Boom… Boom… Boom…_

There was a small earthquake when a much larger dragon of the same species landed next to the nest and settled in it shortly afterwards. With an unmistakably happy growl, Oskar greeted his beloved. When the two dragons affectionately rubbed their heads against each other - a noise like chalk on a blackboard sounded - Sharon heard her companion audibly breathe out.

"So much for that," he whispered at her ear, giving her goose bumps. A grin lingered in his voice. "Let's give these two lovebirds a little privacy."

Slowly, hand in hand, the two sneaked away. It wasn't until they were at a safe distance and out of sight that Charlie undid the spell on their bodies. Sharon was impressed with how perfectly the disguise had worked. It was apparent that he must have used this spell many times already and thus perfected it.

Afterwards they visited two more nests, one of which was abandoned and the other currently used for a nap. In the end they returned to the hollow tree.

"Okay, what do you want to see next?" Charlie asked as he reached for the brooms. Sharon noticed, rather incidentally, how he rolled his shoulder shortly thereafter.

"North of here are the enclosures of the Caribbean underwater dragons, for example. It's not the mating season right now, so their scales don't shimmer quite as much, but we should still be able to see them sufficiently from the air."

The dragon keeper spoke so animatedly and enthusiastically that Sharon almost forgot the reason for her dejected mood. With a heavy heart she took the comet.

"Actually, the Chinese fireballs would have been on the schedule today, but apparently there's a general medical checkup going on." Charlie shrugged, unconcerned. "That's why, whether we like it or not, it'll have to wait until next week."

Sharon froze. That last sentence had the same effect as a fist punching her in the pit of her stomach. Charlie noticed her reaction and got a similar feeling. When the witch looked at him, he held his breath involuntarily. There it was again - that sad smile that stabbed him right in the heart.

"You know what?" Determined, he got on his broom. "Change of plans."

Sharon lifted an inquiring eyebrow and did the same.

"Change of plans? What-"

"You'll see."

Confidently, he gave her a wink. There was one thing in the world of dragons that was guaranteed to cheer her up. Without the slightest doubt.

"By all the magic, Charlie… This…"

Enraptured, Sharon gasped for breath. And for good reason. Because just a few minutes ago, the two had entered the place she had secretly been looking forward to for quite some time - the reserve's nursery station. Here, the sight that presented itself to her succeeded in chasing away the dark clouds surrounding her soul without any difficulty.

Like a Quidditch fan admiring the latest broom model in a shop window at Diagon Alley, Sharon stood in front of a glass plate, behind which several baby dragons cavorted in the magical imitation of a forest. The colour of the scales suggested that they were Welsh greens.

"Successful surprise?" Charlie asked and placed a warming hand on her lower back. A tender touch that made this part of her body suddenly feel much more alive than the rest of her.

"You have to ask?" the witch laughed. "Of course it is."

Euphoric that his idea had been spot-on and had brought back the sparkle in her eyes, Charlie led her to the door.

"Come, I'll introduce you."

As soon as they entered the room, Sharon felt the slight temperature rise. And even more so when the wizard moved closer so he could whisper in her ear. So far the babies hadn't noticed their presence.

"Don't be surprised if a few of them keep their distance. Especially the little ones," he said, pointing to the other end of the room where those were wrestling with each other. "Their teeth aren't formed yet, so you don't need to be afraid of bites. Neither can they spit fire. And don't misunderstand the nibbling. They're just curious and like to play."

After Sharon had given an affirmative nod, Charlie straightened up to his full height, pulled her further into the room and clicked his tongue audibly. This sound worked better than any dog whistle. Instantly, several of the hatchlings lifted their heads up.

A small wave of green rushed towards them. When Sharon didn't even bat an eyelid or take a step back, Charlie felt a strange sensation flaring up in his chest. It reminded him of pride.

The first babies who reached them focused entirely on him and ignored the unknown visitor. A few latecomers stopped at a safe distance to suss things out with folded wings.

Sharon laughed softly when two greens attempted to climb up the wizard while another began gnawing on his trouser leg.

"They're begging," Charlie explained, trying to keep his balance. "Greedy rascals. They've been fed less than an hour ago."

"What exactly do baby dragons eat?"

"Liquid food. Usually a blend of animal blood and alcohol."

When Sharon looked at him in disbelief, his eyes flashed with amusement.

"What? You don't believe me?" he asked and swayed slightly when the greens let go of him. Disappointed about not having received any food.

"Hm…" The smirking witch raised an eyebrow. "I'm just pondering whether you withheld alcohol from my other form or not. If so, you owe me a drink."

Charlie blinked. Then the deep laughter that she loved so much and would therefore miss all the more burst out of him. Hurriedly, Sharon concentrated once again on the greens, two of whom now dared to take a closer look at the other human in their territory. Curious. Sniffing. With serpentine curve movements they approached the witch, disturbing the earthy ground by doing so.

"Stretch out your hand," the wizard said and demonstrated it to her. "They want to pick up your scent."

Sharon followed the instruction. It tickled slightly when the two identical looking babies pressed their noses against her to get an idea of her through the smell. The witch looked at them closely, but could not detect any difference. Even their scales showed the same pattern.

"They are twin sisters," Charlie explained, as if he had read her mind. "They shared an egg, which is very rare among dragons. A German dragon keeper named them Mond and Fee - in English Moon and Fairy - because they hatched under a full moon when the fairy lights were just flying around their nest."

"Mond and Fee…" Sharon repeated softly. "That sounds pretty."

After her scent had been accepted and the other babies got used to her presence as well, Charlie called two brushes via _Accio_ , one of which he passed on to the witch. The two sat down in the middle of the room next to one of several nests.

"Normally, we don't have so many hatchlings of one species at once that we have to take care of," the dragon keeper explained. "But one mother is ill and the other has abandoned two of her weakest ones."

"How terrible."

The consternation in her voice made Charlie look up briefly before he nodded in agreement.

"That's nature. On the one hand merciless and on the other…" He waited till they made eye contact. "…unbelievably beautiful."

Sharon felt herself blushing. This moment resembled a déjà vu, until the memory of their first meeting returned to her. Back then he had complimented her dragon form with the same wording.

While the witch was stuck in the past for a moment, the dragon keeper couldn't tear himself away from her eyes in the present. This only succeeded when the green in front of him complained that he had stopped brushing.

Mond and Fee, who rested next to and on Sharon's lap, began to hum. The latter rubbed her head against the witch's belly, causing her to feel the vibrations deep inside her body.

"Is that normal?" Sharon asked amusedly and heard her voice rattling. Charlie's astonishment was impossible to miss.

"Yes and no," he said with a certain envy. "Does your animagus power make you some sort of dragon whisperer?"

"Well… as a dragon, I can understand them to some extent."

Charlie didn't respond at first. Then he looked at her with a face as if she'd told him that from this day on Quidditch would no longer be played on broomsticks. His were the eyes of a man who as a child had dreamed of being able to communicate with other creatures on the same level. Hastily, the witch backpaddled.

"Not like you think. But I can… sense their feelings?" She sighed at the memory of that terrible night a few days ago. "That reminds me that Zoltán was really upset. How's he doing?"

Charlie needed a moment to respond because the next baby dragon demanded his attention. In a state of complete contentment, this one rolled onto his back so that the scales on his belly could be groomed.

"Not much different than usual. He's going through puberty. On top of that, he refuses to accept a life within the enclosure," the dragon keeper explained and rolled his shoulder as he had done earlier that day. A movement that Sharon didn't miss. "He wasn't born on the reserve like most of the others here, but spent the first weeks of his life in freedom. That's not something one easily forgets. Although he has more space here than anywhere else in the world."

The witch nodded understandingly. After a moment of silence she laid down her brush and waited until Fee had left her lap before moving in her sitting position a bit closer.

"Does your arm hurt again?" she asked, noting how the wizard tensed his muscles. He gave her a small, reassuring smile.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just twinges a little bit since this morning."

"You should've waited a little longer with the flying. Not to mention the stone flicking recently," Sharon said, rebuking herself inwardly for participating and not taking better care. Simply irresponsible.

Without hesitating, she lifted up her hands, asking him to move closer with them.

"Come here. There's a trick I know."

First hesitantly, then obediently, Charlie sought a better position next to her. Much closer than would have been necessary in the end. Not even a baby dragon could have fitted between them. 

Using both hands, Sharon stroked her long strands of hair behind her ears before gripping his wrist in a professional manner.

"Keep it relaxed," she said, nodding in satisfaction when he released the tension in his arm. Gently, her hand stroked across the forearm to the elbow and back again to get a feel for his tight, scarred skin. Then her fingers searched for the right pressure points. Slowly she worked her way up from below to the crook of his arm and after that up to his shoulder.

This massage of small, circling movements was a relief. In fact, it was so good that Charlie soon closed his eyes. One or two sounds of pleasure escaped him, which Sharon deliberately tried to ignore, but would probably not forget.

"All right," she said eventually, slightly out of breath. "Shake your arm."

When Charlie followed the instruction and tentatively stretched himself, he was quite astonished. The annoying twinge had disappeared.

"Much better. Where did you learn to do that?"

"My mother taught me."

This sentence made the dragon keeper pale slightly. He hadn't really thought about her family situation until now, but if her mother was even half as protective as his own, then the reserve - especially himself - was in for a terrible fate.

"Shit, your parents are probably worried sick. Have you contacted your family yet? Otherwise, our owlery is right-"

"No." The witch shook her head. "Thanks, but that won't be necessary. Where they are, no owl will reach them."

"No problem, we have other birds for long distance flights as well."

The naivety that lingered in his words evoked a sad smile on Sharon's face. It was the same one she had already shown several times that day, although this time a bygone event was the trigger.

"Charlie… They're dead."

This barely audible revelation instantly shifted the mood in the room by a hundred and eighty degrees. Almost as if a dementor had settled down in her words. Some subjects simply possessed that power.

Filled with consternation, Charlie opened his mouth, closed it again and repeated the process.

"Oh Merlin, I… I'm so sor-"

"No, please don't. It's okay," she quickly interrupted. "To be precise, I've already told you about it a long time ago."

Without noticing, both had moved even closer together. Their legs touched and warmed each other.

"That one time when you were crying," he whispered realising. Sharon nodded. Astonished and touched that he could remember and that he had linked the threads together correctly.

"Your words gave me so much comfort at that time. And this even though you didn't know I was human or the reason why I was crying."

The witch seemed absent for a moment. She lowered her eyes.

"I had… told you that the war had taken my family. But no details…"

"You don't have to-"

"It's okay." Sharon took a deep breath. "It does me good to talk about it. Or at least I'll feel better afterwards."

Mond and Fee, who seemed to sense her inner turmoil, rubbed their heads against her and nibbled at her clothes. Smiling, Sharon stroked the green scales of the babies. The warmth they exuded calmed her and served as her anchor as she prepared herself to talk about this dark part of her past.

"For as long as I can remember, it's always been just my parents and myself," the witch began after a moment. "They were unable to have any more children after me, so I grew up an only child. Maybe a little bit spoiled, but very happy."

Charlie nodded, though he could hardly picture himself in that situation. For him, there had at least been Bill from the very beginning. The dragon keeper imagined a life without siblings as being like a rainbow which lacked a crucial colour.

"But my childhood was not always pure sunshine," the witch confessed with an unusual embarrassment. "I… I had to deal with emotional outbursts when I was younger."

"In what sense? Dragon-like tantrums when you couldn't get your way?"

"Among other things." Sharon laughed softly. "Becoming an animagus has certainly helped me to gain control over my feelings, both good and bad."

Various memories flooded the witch's mind. Of tears over trivial things and fits of laughter until her stomach hurt. Of excess energy which she had to expel from her body by running and jumping.

"My father was the one who helped me through the process all the way to the first transformation," Sharon said with a smile. "Because he was an animagus himself."

"Oh? What kind of animal?"

In response to Charlie's justified question, his conversation partner pressed her lips together to suppress a snort - and failed.

"A… A mouse." Her body shook. "I'll never forget his shock after my transformation. Mum had proudly announced that I inherited the dragon-part from her alone."

For a moment they remained in this happy piece of the past. Then Sharon's face fell and Charlie knew that now the core of her story would follow. Instinctively he took the hand on her lap and noticed, not for the first time, how perfectly it seemed to fit into his.

"My parents ran a clinic that now belongs to me…" the witch whispered and turned her hand under his to interlock their fingers. "During those dark days, they did everything in their power to help as many people as possible. That's just the way they were. And while I'm certainly proud of them, sometimes I think… maybe things would have been different if…"

Sharon shook her head when she started to drift off. A short pressure on her hand managed to secure her in the here and now. Her eyes searched for Charlie's, in which one could find so much calmness and understanding that even the biggest storm would have come to a standstill.

"Death Eaters had got wind of the fact that they had given shelter to muggle-borns and helped them with their medical knowledge," she finally said in one breath. "They were still warm when I found them. There… was… so much blood…"

A tremor passed through her body. She turned away without letting go of him. 

"So much for controlling my emotions."

"You can't compare those things with one another. Let it all out."

His request was unnecessary. Halfway through the first sentence, tears were already rolling down Sharon's cheeks. She whimpered, squeezed his hand and whimpered even more.

Those sounds were what broke Charlie. With his lips pressed together, he pulled her body towards him as if she weighed nothing. The witch gasped in surprise, but that sound was muffled instantly. Charlie held her. He was everywhere and it was perfect.

Certainly it wasn't the most comfortable hug - a trapped arm and in addition to that her slightly twisted upper body - but it was this kind of contact between two people where their shared warmth seemed to penetrate the skin. Sharon felt Charlie's compassion reach her heart - and elicit a sob from her mouth. The grip of his arms tightened as she cried, cried and cried. Until finally exhaustion set in.

The witch heard his heartbeat beneath her ear and closed her overstrained eyes. He was so strong and stable. Like a tree one leaned against on a summer day to enjoy the shade. But she wanted to lean against him all year round.

"It's not as bad as it used to be. I even went to therapy. But sometimes I see those images from back then all of a sudden in front of me again." She snapped her fingers with her free hand. "Like flashes in my head."

The dragon keeper pulled her into a more comfortable position in order to hold her better.

"I understand you. I… I have nightmares now and then. Especially about the battle." He swallowed hard. He'd only had this sort of conversation a handful of times. If at all. "One… One of my brothers almost died. I got there far too late. If I'd been there sooner-"

"No, Charlie…"

Sharon detached herself from him and wiped away two tears from his cheek. They all carried their own personal pack of soul pain due to the events of that time. One could only hope that it would lose weight over the years. Until then they simply had to help each other carry it.

"It's okay. Everything is okay." Her eyes fell on the tear marks she had left on him. "Except for your clothes. Sorry."

Charlie followed her gaze and shook his head with a smile.

"Never mind," he said, removing the moisture by using a quick drying spell. Sighing with envy, the witch watched this trivial action.

"I really need a new wand," she said. "Hopefully the next one will be as devoted to me as my first one was."

"I'm sure it will. This isn't the one I used in school, either."

After this unexpected sentence, Sharon tilted her head while Charlie simultaneously experienced a terrible flashback to his last date. But this time there was no blame in the other person's eyes. Indeed, the witch smiled and showed pure surprise, slight curiosity.

"Oh? Why?"

The wizard cleared his throat briefly before he explained to her in a seemingly nonchalant manner the circumstances of his family at that time and how his first wand had found its way into the possession of his youngest brother. Sharon listened intently and eventually placed one hand on his arm. There her thumb could stroke a bright burn scar. 

"All this shows that you are always there for each other and can rely on one another," she said with conviction. "I think that's wonderful."

With an intense look, the dragon keeper turned his head towards her - and only then did they both become aware of the small distance between them. Their faces were so close that Sharon could count his freckles. There were so many. And every single one seemed to shout for a kiss. The witch noticed how she instinctively leaned forward to give just that. But only a moment later, her urge was thwarted. A green squeezed between them. With a distinct complaint on the lips.

"All right," Charlie smiled. "I guess somebody's become a little impatient."

When the wizard reached for the brush again, it took Sharon a moment to regain her composure. Inside of her burned the desire for a clear sign that would finally change the nature of their relationship. The equivalent of the nest that Oskar had built for his beloved. Except that in Charlie's case, a small hint would have sufficed. Something that happened when he unexpectedly opened his mouth to speak. With a question that was even more unexpected.

"That reminds me, do I need to take any protective measures?"

"What?"

He shrugged his shoulders in response to her confusion.

"I just want to be warned in case a boyfriend shows up here and tries to curse me for the captivity of his beloved." He paused briefly. "Or a girlfriend."

The corner of Sharon's mouth twitched after the last addition. Her insides roared with the turn of events that their conversation had taken. It was indeed a roller coaster ride between them.

"No need to worry. There's no _man_ who wants to drag you over the coals," she replied and took a deep breath. "So the post is still vacant, if _anyone_ is interested."

For a split second, the dragon keeper stopped moving. As he put the brush away, the little green briefly raised his head before making the decision to simply take a nap on the spot. Mond and Fee were already sleeping close together as well.

"Anyone… in this room?"

Charlie looked at her with a steady gaze. And suddenly there was no more uncertainty. It was all in his eyes. A mirror of her own feelings. With a heat in her body, rivaling the fire of her dragon form, Sharon swallowed and wet her lips.

"Charlie, I-"

A blinding light broke into the room, jumped in a zigzag and landed between them. It was a patronus in the shape of a squirrel - Pedro's patronus.

"Hey, Char. Is Sharon with you?"

The elder dragon keeper had to deal with the vipertooths most of the time, which is why Sharon had met him - apart from that fateful night - only once so far. In her dragon form she had almost roasted him without intention. In the present situation it wouldn't be an accident.

"Ciprian just intercepted me… Must've been in a hurry because of something… Well, _no importa_. I'm supposed to let you know that a portkey has been deposited at the apparation house. Seems like it's urgent - at least according to Magda… So you'd better take our guest there straightaway. _Ahora_. Now."

Sharon forgot to breathe. When the little patronus had completed its mission and vanished, silence filled their surroundings. Broken only by the sleeping sounds of the many baby dragons.

"You're leaving…" Charlie finally whispered. It was not a question, but a statement. As soon as he stood up, the witch did the same to stay on the same eye level with him.

"I just found out about it this morning. I… I thought it would take a while longer." Her fingernails were biting into her palms. "The Ministry pulled some strings. Now that I've resurfaced, they need me to testify as quickly as possible in front of the Wizengamot. They want to bring the case I was involved in to a close… the case that brought me here…"

While she was still talking, Charlie took her hand and guided her towards the exit. Despite the obvious time pressure that was suddenly put on them, this touch did not lack any gentleness. As they climbed on the brooms, Sharon looked towards the mountains.

"Wait, I can't just… I have to… Jolina and Aaron…"

"Don't worry. I'll explain it to them."

Charlie's face displayed a mask of seriousness. This lasted until the two of them reached their destination and entered the apparation house. It was a simple building, whose interior design shone in warm wood tones. Several delimited free spaces were used for the arrival on and the departure from the reserve. Further back there was a counter, behind which a stocky witch was sitting - Magda.

"At last," she said when the two arrived slightly out of breath. "I've already witnessed a lot in my work, but rarely have I come across such portkey stress. One fucking hour until activation! What does your Ministry think, Weasley? This isn't a city park!"

"One…"

"Now only a few more minutes. Wait, I'll get it."

As soon as the witch had disappeared behind the counter, Sharon grabbed her forehead. Too quickly. All of this happened too quickly. Her gaze fell on a quill pot, holding a colourful fwooper feather. Determined, she grabbed it and then Charlie's hand to write her address on his skin. In her haste trying to leave a legible handwriting.

"Write to me," Sharon urged and let him go. It was neither a request nor a suggestion. She would have accepted a great deal, just to make sure that the contact between them wouldn't break off under any circumstances.

And Charlie, whose hand was tingling from the quill, could not help but think of the many people with whom he sporadically exchanged letters. Most of them international friends he had met during his work for the Order of the Phoenix.

The dragon keeper swallowed hard. This very witch he did not want to have as a pen pal.

"Here it is," Magda's voice sounded. "Just in time."

When Sharon was handed the portkey - a little teddy bear missing an ear - she felt as if she didn't score enough points for can tossing and only won the consolation prize. The witch pressed the stuffed animal tightly against her chest. Almost feeling like a child again, seeking comfort from an imaginary friend. About as vulnerable she felt too.

Charlie followed her to one of the free spaces. He hadn't made a sound yet. Fingertips on his cheek breathed new life into him.

"Thanks for everything…" Sharon blinked repeatedly. A veil of tears made her eyes shine. "You were the best dragon keeper a dragon animagus could have wished for."

The witch leaned forward. Tenderly, her lips touched his cheek. And there it was. The last straw that broke the broom.

Charlie felt his body take on a life of its own. His hand featuring her address slipped to her neck as she moved away. Sharon let out a startled sound and suddenly his lips crashed down on hers.

In the background Magda gasped for breath out of surprise, but nobody cared. A swirl of emotion raged through Charlie when the witch pressed herself against him without the slightest hesitation and kissed him back. Fingers slipped through his hair while his arms embraced as much of her as possible. The world stopped. There was no time or space, just their lips making love to each other. 

The kiss was urgent and without any restraint. It contained everything that lay beneath the surface of their feelings, which until then had only been scratched.

When they parted after a longer moment, the two looked at each other breathing heavily. With eyes that said more than a thousand words. At the same time the seconds passed without mercy. Fifteen, ten, five…

And suddenly Sharon no longer held the bear lightly. She pressed it so hard against her chest that it hurt. Her heart burst open and with it everything she had stored inside of it. 

"I love y-"

The last thing the witch saw before she disappeared were Charlie's eyes, which widened noticeably. The portkey tore her away - but her confession remained.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *big smile* I love cliffhangers. xD


	10. All you have to do is ask

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Friday! I hope you enjoy this chapter. As always I would love to hear your opinion. :)

_Home is where the heart is._

Sharon had always considered this saying, which her mother had used quite often during her lifetime, to make sense. But for the first time ever, she truly understood what it meant. For the portkey seemed to have forgotten her heart in Romania.

Lost in thought, the witch sighed. Her return to England had heralded a time of re-encounters. She still felt her best friend's arms around her body, as if a binding spell had been cast on her. So strong had been Andrea's tearful embrace during their reunion.

At the first opportunity, the two had engaged in a lengthy conversation accompanied by a generous amount of wine, whereby Sharon had to talk in detail about her time as the opaleye Inimă - and her feelings for Charlie had come to light after the first few sentences.

Andrea's reactions had resembled a carrousel. First shock, then amusement and finally breathlessness at the mention of the name Weasley. Only after a few - or rather several - sips of wine and a moment of silence she had been able to regain her composure sufficiently.

"So…" A throat clear. "Did he also take care of your… um… excrement?"

"Bloody hell, Andrea! Honestly!"

But this was only one of many memorable moments. For instance, at court, Sharon had even re-encountered the two people to whom she owed her involuntary stay at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary.

The head of the rescue squad for magical creatures, Charlie's former school friend Brian, had expressed his horror to her and would have even dropped to his knees in apology if his colleague and girlfriend Roxy hadn't vigorously prevented him from doing so. Apparently, the two of them had got together shortly after the case and still carried the magic of a freshly blossomed love in their eyes.

Sharon sighed as she remembered the couple. For it made her automatically think of the fact that Charlie had still not written to her. Despite their kiss. Despite her declaration of love. Despite everything.

 _The owl post takes a few days. Maybe he didn't write a letter straight away. Or perhaps the owl has lost its way. Or a dragon has…_ The witch pressed a hand to her chest when emotional pain flared up inside of it. _By all the magic in the world - please let nothing have happened to him._

"Ms. Apley? I have some papers here that need your signature."

Sharon flinched when her attention was so unexpectedly called for. Her gaze, which had hung at the window, turned to the door of her office. There a smiling witch stood, who was currently in training as a healer and had started her internship a while prior to Sharon's return. Due to her long absence, some changes had taken place in the clinic under the direction of her representative, which sometimes made the witch feel like a stranded person within familiar surroundings.

"How many more times do I have to tell you, Lavender? Sharon will do just fine," the witch said, waving the younger one in. "After all, I'm only a few years older than you."

"But still my boss."

Lavender giggled in a girlish manner before she entered the room and placed several documents - including orders for magical utensils and medicinal herbs - on the desk. Sharon's former boss had kept his word. Due to her successfully completed mission, the clinic no longer needed to worry about the delivery of healing ingredients. It was a blessing.

After a thorough verification, the witch put her signature on the parchments and conjured the seal of the clinic next to it. The wand she had purchased right after her return - cedar wood and dragon heartstring - was good to handle, but still rested unfamiliarly in her hand. It remained questionable whether this had to do with the fact that it wasn't her old one or because she hadn't used a wand for a very long time.

Buried in thought, Sharon put the wand away and stared at the paperwork. On her lips there was a sigh, reflecting the stress of the past few days.

"If you cannot cast a concealment charm, I'd be happy to help you," Lavender suddenly said. Sharon lifted her head and frowned briefly before she fixed the younger witch with a raised eyebrow. As a result of this reaction, which wordlessly demanded an explanation for this sentence, a distinctive blush shot up Lavender's cheeks.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," she said with embarrassment. "I didn't want to be indelicate - this is something I'm still working on - but… I couldn't help but notice that you… Um…"

When every word became too much, the prospective healer pointed at the wrist that Sharon held in an iron grip. She had developed the habit of wearing long-sleeved clothing, but still imagined that her scars could be seen through the fabric. Especially on the wrists.

"How much would this cover?" Sharon asked, loosening her grasp. "I'm afraid we're not talking about a pimple problem in this case."

Lavender reflexively touched her cheek, where she had probably concealed such a skin blemish. For an instant she was lost in thought.

"It covers up whatever you want," she finally said, suddenly looking much younger than she already did. "Certain things others don't need to see."

When her hand left her face and settled on a spot above her hip instead, Sharon nodded understandably. The former Hogwarts student had seen and endured things one wouldn't even wish on one's worst enemy.

"Thank you. I gladly accept the offer," the witch decided after a moment and was happy to see how the eyes of the younger one shone with delight.

Shortly after Lavender had explained and demonstrated the spell to her, the gentle melody of a harp suddenly sounded. Its source was a ball of light on her desk, glowing bright green - a magical messaging system in which every colour had a different meaning. Red, for example, signified medical emergencies.

"The front desk," Sharon realised, rolling her eyes. "If it's Mr. Binner suffering from streeler poisoning again, I'll go bonkers. I will never understand why some people keep such creatures as pets."

"They have lovely colours," Lavender remarked, but fell silent the moment Sharon gave her a look that was part disbelieving, part amused.

The two women separated in front of the office to set off in different directions. In a determined manner, Sharon turned in the direction of the reception and walked past a few landscape paintings on which unicorns were galloping while rubbing her neck with both hands. 

_Today a hot bath and the remaining wine_ , the witch decided without further ado. Her gaze lingered on a painting whose mountainous landscape reminded her of the reserve. _And if he hasn't contacted me by tomorrow, I'll travel to him._

Pleased to have made a decision, Sharon nodded to herself. Unaware that it would remain unexecuted. For when she reached the clinic's entrance area, neither a Mr. Binner with streeler poisoning nor any other patient was awaiting her.

Sharon froze under the door frame and felt her eyes widen. Robust and freckled as ever, Charles Weasley stood with his back to her at the front desk.

Before the witch was able to react, another person behind her pushed her the last step into the room.

"Sharon? Are you all right?" an elder healer asked, shaking his head at her affirmative noise and walking past her.

The sound of her name worked as well as the tongue clicking for baby dragons. As if he were a dog who had heard the postman, Charlie pricked up his ears and turned around. As soon as their eyes met, the witch felt her knees soften.

With a deep breath the wizard leaned, arms crossed, against the counter behind him. The bright, cramped ambience made him look rather out of place. Expansive natural landscapes were indeed the place which suited him best.

"Your handwriting is atrocious," Charlie announced in place of a greeting. "Do you know how many house numbers I had to check on this street just now?"

In an effort to control her heartbeat, Sharon put one hand on her hip. A cheeky answer was quickly found.

"Maybe I didn't want to make it too easy for you."

Determination began to glow in Charlie's eyes. With an energy that was second to none, he pushed himself off the counter and headed towards her. At the same time, her body had the same reaction. Both met somewhere in the middle, where their arms could embrace each other intimately.

Sharon sank into his warmth and felt any tension leave her body when her heart returned to her. For a few seconds she indulged in this feeling of deepest comfort. Then she wasted no more time.

Driven by countless emotions she took his face in her hands and brought their lips together. Three tender butterfly kisses served as an introduction, before a longer eye contact initiated a proper, deep kiss. Without the time pressure from last time, it turned out to be a little less hectic and took their breath away in a completely new way.

"Hello…" Sharon whispered at the end and Charlie returned the greeting in the same way. Slowly, with his eyes closed, he pressed his forehead against hers.

"We have to talk," he said resolutely. "Preferably in private."

From the sudden proximity to him feeling as if intoxicated, the witch hummed approvingly. The two of them constantly had an audience. Be it of animal or human nature.

Smiling, she stepped out of his embrace and took his hand in hers.

"Come on, I know the perfect place for this."

After Sharon had made sure that the clinic could do without her presence for the rest of the afternoon, the two of them stepped outside, where a wooden staircase led to a higher, separate floor that wasn't accessible from the clinic.

"This was once my parents' flat. It didn't make sense to keep my own, so…" Sharon shrugged her shoulders before unlocking the front door with her wand. Two warm arms wrapped around her figure. The witch touched his crossed hands and stroked a small burn scar with her thumb, responding to his silent solicitude, before the two of them separated after a moment and entered together.

"Okay, here we are," Sharon said in the hallway and took a moment to organise her thoughts while taking off her shoes. Charlie did the same and put down his backpack, which contained his magically shrunken travel gear.

In the adjoining living room the witch observed how the dragon keeper gained an impression of everything - and felt her heart beat faster than usual. Here in her apartment it seemed to her, even more than in the clinic, as if two worlds were colliding. To witness Charlie in another environment than in the wild and surrounded by dragons was a new experience - new and exciting.

And only this realisation made Sharon truly aware of the situation in which the two of them found themselves right now. Charlie was here. He wanted to talk. He knew how she felt.

_Gulping gargoyles._

Her eyes widened. The man of her dreams was standing in her living room and she hadn't made any preparations for such a scenario.

_No panic. One thing at a time._

Hastily, Sharon drew her wand and pointed it at a few magazines that were scattered on the dining table. With a flutter they closed and flew into a nearby drawer. Afterwards, various bits and pieces - including letters, a dropped cardigan and two empty water bottles - met a similar fate.

"You were really cute," Charlie said all of a sudden. He had stopped in front of a wall showing a mix of moving and motionless family photos. His finger pointed at an older picture of a younger version of her, laughing on a swing. Colourful bows adorned her hair like a rainbow.

"What? Not anymore?" she joked and stood beside him. There had been a time when this wall had been completely bare because she couldn't endure the sight.

"No," Charlie smiled. " _Cute_ wouldn't be the first word that comes to mind."

When the witch raised an eyebrow, he was drawn to it and pressed a kiss on this spot. From there, his lips moved toward her forehead while an arm wrapped around her waist. Sharon blushed at this gesture, which conveyed a new, different level of intimacy.

"I can't believe you're really here…" she softly confessed right then. "You are here, aren't you? Otherwise, I must prepare for an unpleasant awakening."

Wordlessly, the dragon keeper turned to her and pulled her into a real hug. Sighing, Sharon wrapped her arms around him. Each time anew, it felt as if she was a puzzle to which a crucial piece had been added. A piece she never wanted to miss again, even though she knew that the circumstances didn't allow it.

"When do you have to go back? How much time do we have?"

"Just the weekend," he murmured, burying his face in her hair. "All this was short notice… I took the first available portkey I could get. Had to pull some strings or it would have taken even longer."

Silence fell over them. Despite his words, it was a pleasant quietness in which one could remain forever with the right company.

Charlie let his fingers run through her hair while he enjoyed the feeling of her shape pressed against his. Only a few hours ago, he had been worried that the reunion between them would happen differently than in his imagination. More complicated. But now he realised that hardly anything in his life had ever felt as simple and right as holding this witch in his arms.

"Did you mean it?"

"What?"

Sharon raised her head and noticed that his eyes were looking at her with almost uncanny precision. Gently, he guided her hand to his chest. To the spot where his heart was beating vigorously beneath fabric and skin. And the witch automatically began to nod.

"Yes…" she whispered. "Of course…"

Charlie took a deep breath and leaned down to her as he exhaled. This kiss was different from the previous ones. Where there had been storms before, there was now a gentle breeze. At first, his lips glided over hers as if she were water that he didn't want to disturb. His calloused hands gripped her cheeks while her own clawed into the fabric of his top. Only then their mouths found their way to each other, dancing in a mutual rhythm, spreading warmth throughout their bodies.

Without question it was a perfect kiss - at least until a stomach growl interrupted the silence. And this one was so audible that Sharon couldn't help but let go of him with a snort.

"I might have guessed that one," she smiled, rolling her eyes. "Wait, I'll make us something to eat."

"No, that-"

A short kiss interrupted his embarrassed objection.

"You've supplied me with food for weeks," the witch argued and started walking as she spoke. "Now it's my turn."

"You can hardly call that cooking!" he contradicted and shook his head while following her towards the kitchen. There he blocked her passage by using his broad upper body. "Here's the deal: You're going to freshen up and I'll prepare something to eat in the meantime."

"But-"

This time he stopped her with a kiss that left her lips tingling.

"The menu wasn't exactly the best, but did I ever leave you hungry?" he asked, pretending to be serious. When Sharon laughed at this, it only took a moment before he joined her. The witch was greatly relieved that the two of them had reached the point in their relationship where he could joke about that time.

"All right - how can I say no to that?" she replied and stroked his chest provocatively before turning away with a wink. "Well, then I'll jump in the shower."

When Sharon had left the room, he called out another question to her.

"Oh, are you in the mood for anything in particular?"

With lips that failed to suppress a grin, the witch stopped in the hallway. How much she loved it when he gave her lead-ins like that.

"Yes, but that has something to do with satisfying other desires," she called back and waited a moment until she thought to hear a muffled groan.

Laughing softly, Sharon went into the bedroom to pick out fresh underwear and clothes. One second she was reaching for her favourite bra - black, plain, well worn - the next another thought crossed her mind. She put the old piece back.

_Let's go all the way._

The witch got down on her knees and opened the drawer in her closet, which was reserved for special occasions. Single-mindedly, her hands rummaged through a selection of satin, velvet and lace. The soft fabric felt wonderful. Like a silent hope for the best possible outcome of the day.

With a nod of her head, Sharon decided on a push-up bra made of dark blue fabric with black lace and the matching lower piece. It was magical lingerie on which little owls flew over the dark sections.

_No dragons, but almost as good._

Next she picked out a pair of socks, comfortable trousers and a long-sleeved tunic with flower embroidery before heading into the adjoining bathroom. At the thought that Charlie was close by and that she wanted to take advantage of every single second of this weekend together, a certain haste crept into her movements. 

After a quick shower, she conjured her freshly washed hair dry, making it look for a moment as if the magic had electrically charged it. Another spell left her legs smooth. Sharon rubbed them together for a test and nodded contentedly. The best feeling after all.

_Now the body lotion._

While her hands applied the cream, the witch could not help but look at the scale-shaped scars. For a split second she paused. Then, with a deep breath, she reached for her wand and cast the concealment charm Lavender had shown her. Slowly the lines on her skin faded, as if someone had used an eraser - and Sharon stared back at her old self in the mirror.

 _Just today_ , she thought while getting dressed. _Just. Today._

When the witch stepped back into the living area, which also served as a dining room, she saw that Charlie was standing by the stereo. From the kitchen came an appetizing smell, which piqued her own hunger. She took a deep breath and discovered that the remaining wine and matching glasses had been placed on the already laid table. This man was indeed an expert at finding his way in unfamiliar surroundings.

"That smells heavenly," Sharon said to draw attention to herself. When no response ensued, she raised an amused eyebrow. "Charlie?"

At the sound of his name, the wizard flinched and turned in her direction.

"Oh, sorry, I just noticed you have Marina Loreley's music," he grinned and lifted a magical wooden box with the singer's name on it. "I love her songs. Worlds better than Celestina Warbeck, but don't let my mother hear that."

Sharon blushed. She'd completely forgotten about that. How would he have reacted if she had told him that the music was only meant to keep her memory of his off-key singing in the enclosure alive? That she didn't know a thing about music and had gone to Dominic Maestro's music shop at Diagon Alley to recite lyrics and melody from memory to the man himself? And that he had flinched at every third note that left her lips, as if she had growled at him with her dragon voice?

Charlie pointed at the stereo.

"May I?"

"Be my guest."

The box, which was modelled on the cassettes of the muggle world, was placed on the music system. Not so long ago, people had been confined to listening to songs on the Wizarding Wireless Network, but now they could use this option as well - a development that appealed to younger witches and wizards in particular.

With the tip of his wand he tapped on the wood and muttered the title of a song. As soon as the first notes sounded, Sharon recognised what he had selected: "Broom flight at midnight" - a gentle love song. According to her research, this seemed to be the general interpretation of the fans at least, although the lyrics could just as well refer to a deep friendship.

" _Fly with me through the night._

_Under stars of gentle light._

_Centaurs are reading the sky._

_This magic will never die._ "

Quietly, barely audibly uttering the lyrics, Charlie turned to her - and his gaze left no doubt as to what meaning he attributed to the song. Waving his wand, he summoned the food from the kitchen and directed it to the dining table. He had made a safe choice - spaghetti bolognese.

"Shall we?"

"We shall, Mr. Charles Weasley."

Sharon noted how he instantly pulled a face at the joking mention of his birth name. Searchingly, she scrutinised him as they sat down.

"Okay, I need to know now," the witch said, placing her head on folded hands. "What is so bad about Charles? I think it sounds wonderful."

The wizard did not answer directly, though a smile fell on his lips. He waited with that until the two of them had put a portion of noodles on their plates.

"I don't know. It's all right, I guess," he finally said. "It's just that it's been altered to Charlie right from the start. And Charles always came into action whenever I was in trouble at home or at school."

Sharon reached for the wine and poured it into their glasses. In retrospect, satisfied that she had done a bulk purchase immediately after her return and that they could enjoy it now.

"Hmm, maybe you should be called that at a moment that will give you fond memories of the name…" she winked and practically breathed, "…right, Charles?"

The wizard felt his neck heating up. Glasses clinked softly as they toasted their shared meal. The first of hopefully many more to come.

"Possibly."

They talked about all kinds of things. Conversation topics alternated like a quaffle that was thrown from one chaser to another during a Quidditch game. It was not surprising to Sharon that Charlie brought up her animagus form at one point and asked whether she had expected this one before her first transformation. A question that she resolutely answered in the negative - who would ever believe that they would turn into a dragon?

"To be honest, I didn't give it much thought at the time. I just wanted to succeed and would have probably been happy with pretty much any animal."

Suddenly, she chuckled and shook her head, causing the wizard to smile as well.

"What's so funny?"

Sharon took a deep breath in and out. Only then did she realise how relaxed her shoulders already were. Normally, they dropped down a bit only after such a conversation.

"Oh, I just noticed that I've got this whole revelation of being an animagus over and done with." She tilted her head back briefly. "And that is… _such a relief_. Usually I don't talk about it until the third or fourth date."

It escaped the witch's attention that she had thereby given a name to their get-together. Charlie's smile deepened.

"What? Why?" he asked.

"Well, believe it or not, but some men feel intimidated when they find out that their date could turn into a dragon at any moment." Sharon sighed deeply. "Ever since a guy once ditched me with the bill at a restaurant, I vowed to keep that information to myself for a while."

Charlie mumbled something that her former date wouldn't have liked and took another bite. With a thoughtful expression, Sharon drank from the water she had switched to after the wine. She could see that he intentionally took his time over dinner. In the enclosure, he had enjoyed his packed lunches much more pleasurably and without restraint. She hoped that over time he would lose such inhibitions when he was in her presence.

"You need someone who doesn't care about that sort of thing," Charlie suddenly said, wrapping noodles around his fork. "Someone who might even be attracted to such a potential danger."

Sharon smiled at his choice of words and gave him a flirtatious look over the rim of her glass. The magic between them had been crackling for some time already, but its intensity had steadily increased. In her lower body, a snitch of heat fluttered.

"A dragon keeper, for example?" she asked and carried on with her joke. "Merlin, I can't believe I haven't thought of this before. I'd better pay a visit to the reserve in Wales."

Charlie's lips twitched before a throaty, denying sound escaped them, rejecting this idea.

"Wales? Certainly not."

"Oh? So another reserve would be all right? Well, I could visit some friends in America and then… then…"

His foot stroked along her lower leg. It was such an inconspicuous caress and yet it was already enough to make her fall silent.

"Yes?" he asked and looked at her expectantly. The empty plate in front of him showed that he had finished eating and satisfied his hunger. At least the one of his belly.

Sharon corrected her sitting position and slid slightly forward.

"I could…" Her foot bumped against his and finally stroked his leg. First up, then down. "…take a look at the reserve in Idaho. I heard it's beautiful in the summer."

Their right feet met and played together, before they eventually rested against each other. Almost like the baby dragons she once met.

All of a sudden there was a darkness in Charlie's eyes that had been hiding before.

"That sounds like a trip made for more than one person."

"Hm… I don't mind traveling alone."

Sharon ate the last bite on her plate with an inner smile. When she finished, she cleaned her mouth with a napkin and hid a real one behind it.

"Although I have to confess…" Her eyelids fell briefly. "…that it sounds like the perfect trip for a couple."

Their eyes intertwined like the tendrils of a devil's snare. Until now, only allusions had been exchanged between them. No one had stood up and clearly defined the status of their relationship.

Sharon put her hand on the table. Right there where Charlie could reach for it. When that had happened, she felt her heart pounding almost painfully in her chest.

"A dragon keeper once said to an opaleye that it would be hard to find a witch who would be willing to move to nowhere for a shared future and accept the life-threatening risks of his work." Sharon squeezed his hand. "Is that really the case, Charles?"

The wizard held his breath as he slowly became aware of the full meaning of her words and their implications.

"W… What?"

Leisurely, the witch rose from her seat and approached his. Her movements resembled those he had once displayed to her in the enclosure. Slowly and carefully. As if he was the dragon now and could set her on fire at any moment.

At her destination, his lap became her new seat.

"I don't know what the future holds. But I know that I want you in mine," Sharon whispered, stroking the hair on the back of his neck. "All you have to do is ask."

Suppressed tears shone in Charlie's eyes. His sturdy arms embraced her shape to pull her closer. He had made many life-changing decisions in his life and never stopped following his heart. Now he would not act any differently.

"Do you want to be my witch?" he asked determinedly and Sharon began to beam. There was no better description for it. She hadn't felt as happy as in that moment for a long time. It was the happiest Charlie had ever seen her.

With a breathless yes on her lips, she leaned forward and kissed him. The kiss tasted like noodles and reciprocated love. Moaning, the wizard pulled her towards him as far as he could. It was this sound that immediately banished the gentleness from their movements and made way for a bottled-up urgency.

Sharon felt an unmistakable hardness underneath her. Moisture had already collected between her legs beforehand, but now this feeling intensified.

Charlie's mouth found her throat and placed a necklace of burning kisses around it. Then it moved higher. When he reached the place under her right ear, the witch had to giggle. A sound so unusual for her that he paused for a moment before concentrating consistently on this point.

"Char… lie…!"

"I love your laugh."

In response the witch raised both eyebrows before leaving his lap. Her knees made shaky movements that caused Charlie to show a smug, roguish grin. With the wand she instructed the dishes to return to the kitchen and wash themselves.

"Let's see what other sounds you can elicit from me," Sharon winked.

The sentence had hardly come to an end before the dragon keeper jumped up from his seat and pulled her body to his. Now there was no more restraint when she made such remarks.

The witch groaned into the next kiss. One hand reached into his hair, the other tugged at his shirt. At the same time Charlie pushed her backwards until her back collided with the empty wall between lamp and kitchen door. It was sheer rush. If they had been given a choice, every kiss would have been more important than a breath of air.

"Merlin's beard," Sharon gasped in delight. "I don't think I'm gonna let you out of bed this weekend."

She expected a groan, a laugh or a similar positive reaction. But to her surprise, the wizard detached himself and dropped his head on her shoulder.

"Shit, wait a second. I just remembered something."

Sharon raised an eyebrow and waited as patiently as she could in her current locked up, mind-blowing position.

"It's been a long time since I've been able to travel as unnoticed as I used to. Word must have spread that I've been in the Ministry. My family will wonder where I am," he explained, breathing heavily. "And Mum will assume that I'm staying with them as usual."

This last sentence made Sharon immediately shake her head. Certainly not. So she was selfish, but this weekend with him belonged to her.

"Visits - yes. Staying overnight - fuck, no," she determined without further ado and Charlie had to laugh instinctively until her hands went on an unexpected journey, touching the skin under his clothes. Fingertips glided over abdominal muscles and then drilled into the gap between his trousers and skin.

"Send them a patronus telling them that they don't need to worry and that you will drop by tomorrow," Sharon decided, unknowingly increasing his already strong arousal with her commanding tone.

"Yes, ma'am," Charlie grinned and pulled out his wand to do just that. But what shot out of the tip was not the familiar rhinoceros that the witch had often had the pleasure of admiring. It had wings. It had claws. It was a dragon.

In a state of absolute speechlessness, the two stared at the nebular figure, which Charlie's trained eyes immediately identified as an opaleye. Moving elegantly, the creature floated through the air. Strong. Beautiful. Breathtaking. The manifestation of his feelings for her.

"By the founders of Hogwarts…" the dragon keeper whispered before he was unexpectedly pulled into a new kiss. Groaning, both held each other like two soulmates who had loved each other in a previous life and now found together again. After that, Sharon pressed her forehead against his with closed, tear-filled eyes.

"Damn it, send this message - _now_ ," she urged in a whimpering voice. And because her presence made this rather difficult at the moment, she gathered all her self-control and left her position. "You will find me in the bedroom."

One last glance at the door. Fiery as her dragon nature.

"Don't keep me waiting… Charles."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You all know what will happen in the next chapter, lol.


	11. My heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the next chapter. I hope it will satisfy your expectations. ;)

"You will find me in the bedroom. Don't keep me waiting… Charles."

After Sharon had left with these words, Charlie stood completely motionless for a moment. Unable to do more than blink. In fact, it felt as if all the blood had left his brain to increase the already significant arousal between his legs.

"Fuck…" he whispered and ran his fingers through his hair; grinning. "I won't."

Since the witch had confessed her feelings to him - both through words and actions - the dragon keeper felt as if he had climbed on a broom and reached seventh heaven on it. Sharon loved him. This wonderful woman, who had sneaked herself into his heart as a dragon and captured it as a human in no time, loved him.

Charlie looked at the opaleye of fog that was still waiting for his message, feeling warmth blossoming inside of him. His younger self, who had devoured every book about dragons in the library during Hogwarts times, would probably have swooned with joy.

There was just one problem. He couldn't send a message to his parents with this patronus. His mother would immediately want to know why it had changed shape and not leave him alone until she had all the information about his new relationship status. Especially when one considered that the change of a patronus was not an everyday occurrence and an expression of strong emotions.

For a moment an image of bright pink hair flashed up in Charlie's head. With a heavy heart he thought of Tonks and how she must have felt when her rabbit had turned into a wolf. All the feelings that had shaken her insides.

A loud breath slipped from between his lips before the dragon keeper finally made the decision to whom the patronus would be sent. To the person who made the most sense to him in the present situation and who had stood by his side since the beginning of his life.

"Bill, it's me… Charlie," he said in a firm voice. "To make a long story short: Yes, I'm in the country. Yes, my patronus is a dragon now. No, it's not because I've now completely lost my heart to my work."

The last sentence referred to a running gag the twins used on each of his visits. How would these two react once they learned that his witch was always just one transformation away from destroying her surroundings?

Charlie smiled at the idea - them getting to know each other was something he was looking forward to - before he continued his message. He left Sharon's name out of it for now, but made it clear that they had nothing to worry about and that he would come by tomorrow in person.

"Please not a word to Mum about the patronus or the fact that I'm taken now," he admonished at the end. "If all goes well, she'll have plenty of opportunities to drink tea with this witch in the future."

A break arose. For a moment the dragon keeper considered stopping at this point. Then he decided against it.

"Remember the first time you told me about Fleur? Her and no other, you said." Charlie strengthened the grip on his wand. "I understand that feeling now, William."

Sharon was sitting on the edge of the bed when he found the door to the bedroom. Her right hand drew random patterns on the blanket while her mouth hummed a melody to which no song could be attributed. It was only much later that he would speak to her about it and find out with a loud laugh that she was even less musical than he was. For her humming turned out to be an unrecognisable repetition of "Broom flight at midnight".

Charlie allowed himself a moment to watch her. When he leaned against the door frame, the witch fell silent and looked up. The song had distracted her from her natural impatience, thanks to which she almost made the decision to return to the living room and make love to him on the couch.

"Did everything work out?" she asked and reached out for him. Charlie followed the silent request, stepped into the room and took her hand with a nod. Gently, his thumb drew circles in her palm.

The brief interruption had slightly pulled them out of the moment of passion, but that didn't mean that it had disappeared. Sharon put her free hand on the mattress to stand up. Immediately his arm slipped around her waist to stabilise her.

In contrast to the previous eagerness, the following touches between them happened without haste for the time being. Delicate kisses became the companions of inquiring hands. Sharon found, as before, the skin under his shirt and smiled when his breath faltered.

"May I?" she asked, but Charlie took the work off her hands. Smiling, he stepped back and freed himself from the bothersome fabric. At the sight of dancing muscles, the witch had to swallow involuntarily.

Slowly, she approached him and placed the fingertips of her right hand on a scar at heart level. His body was both frightening and attractive in equal measure. Any other statement on her part would have been a lie. But Sharon could see beneath the surface. And there one was able to discern the man who was courageous and loyal to friends and family, who had an infinite respect for nature and its creatures, who went about his work while singing out of tune, who could eat as much as a half-giant and whose embrace gave her everything her soul needed. The man who held her heart.

"My grandfather had tattoos, but of the unmoving kind. The magical ones are really fascinating, I must say," the witch remarked and let her hand glide over his skin. In the process one of the painted dragons - the horntail - snapped at her fingers. Surprised, she stopped.

"Apparently they don't like that I'm touching their territory," she said in amusement.

"Well…" Charlie winked. "You are about to make it yours, after all."

Unexpectedly moved by this dragon language, Sharon nodded. She certainly would.

"Hmm… In that case, I better ask them for their forgiveness," she whispered, leaning forward to kiss the tattoos. However, to her frustration, they were not so easy to hit. At the fifth attempt both dragons fled in fright to the wizard's back, making its owner shake, half with laughter, half with arousal.

"Oh dear…" Sharon pulled a face. "Have I failed some kind of test now?"

Shaking his head, Charlie stroked over the wrinkles on her forehead until it smoothed out.

"Don't worry. You can fail as many times as you need until they like you," he said, eliciting a small, disbelieving laugh from the witch.

"So you admit that part of your body isn't convinced about me yet?"

Charlie's eyes flashed before he pulled her into a hungry kiss, deliberately pressing his hardness against her. As if he wanted to ask: Does this feel unconvinced?

Heat shot through Sharon from high up all the way to her core. She had already gathered a few experiences in her life, but never before had it felt like this. As if she had tasted the good kind of alcohol before, but now she had been given a taste of a centuries-old bottle. And this one she intended to cherish now until she was utterly drunk from it.

Determined, Sharon reached for her tunic and broke away from him in order to remove it. Afterwards her trousers and socks met the same fate before she cast the contraception spell with her wand and then dropped it onto the pile of clothes.

Charlie, who had stripped down to his boxer shorts in the meantime, regarded her with an intensity that was hard to bear in a motionless state. When her body shifted its centre of gravity, it was pulled closer. Skin met skin.

"Good Godric…" he said in a deep voice. "Is this for me?"

One of his hands slid to her back. The other caressed her magical bra with its knuckles. By doing so the embroidered owls got startled, which seemed to almost hypnotise him. Without a doubt he liked her choice of clothes. 

"That's a bold question you're asking," Sharon smiled cheekily. "Maybe I just put this on because I like it."

"And I wouldn't have it any other way. The most important thing is to wear something you feel comfortable in." He interrupted his bird-watching to give her a confident grin. "Although, of course, we both know what the answer to my question is."

Sharon's jaw dropped. Playfully, she slapped his chest. With a fake expression of pain, the wizard detached himself from her and sank onto the edge of the bed. But then something changed in his face. Fun became seriousness.

"Speaking of feeling comfortable…" Charlie took her hand and pulled her between his legs. "Where are they?"

"Where is what?"

When the witch looked down at herself in confusion, he lifted her chin with one finger.

"Your scars."

Sharon froze. Her arms wrapped around each other in reflex. Her legs had a similar reaction. She couldn't prevent it. Though the time as an auror had also left a few marks on her body, they had never been as noticeable as the ones she was now wearing on her skin thanks to the smugglers.

"Oh…" She laughed nervously. "I thought it would be better if I… well… before we…"

A kiss between her covered breasts made her fall silent. Charlie took a deep breath and then leaned back.

"I understand that," he reassured her. "It's not easy. And if you need this spell to make you feel good while you're out there, I won't stop you. But one thing you must never forget…"

The dragon keeper took her hand and guided it to one of his worst scars. Like a red lightning bolt, running from his shoulder to his waist. Horntail attack three years ago. The healing spell had come too late.

"You don't have to hide anything here with me," he whispered, making her eyes wet with this assurance. Sharon blinked hastily until the feeling had passed.

"They… don't bother you?"

"Do mine bother you?"

Though his question was only meant to dispel her insecurity, the witch realised that there was a part of him that felt uneasy about that as well. Head shaking, she took his face in her hands. And since actions were known to often say more than words, her heart made a quick decision.

Quietly, hardly understandable she muttered the spell that would undo the concealment spell. Her skin glowed for a moment. Then it held no secret anymore.

Charlie suppressed a relieved sigh and showed his gratitude for her trust by tracing the indentations that had appeared with his lips. Each edge received a kiss.

"You are beautiful… Like a piece of art…"

"I look like a fish."

Her dry response made him snort just as he reached the left side of her waist.

"No," Charlie growled and pulled her into his lap by the back of her knees. Sharon was pushed into an intense kiss that instinctively drew a moan from her. When they parted, his grin was pure sin. "Like a dragon."

The witch leaned back. With her lower lip between her teeth, she tried not to laugh. She couldn't help herself. She had to ask.

"Just to be on the safe side… You don't feel a _special_ attraction towards animals… do you?"

This indirect accusation of indulging in zoophilia hit Charlie like a bludger in the middle of a Quidditch match. His mouth opened, closed and repeated the process. He had never been thrown off his game that fast before. Not even by his twin brothers and they held the unbeaten record in this regard.

As soon as Sharon could no longer hold back her laughter, his hands glided ticklingly over her skin to intensify it.

"You…" he snorted. "…will pay for this!"

When the witch provocatively moved her hips and he was forced to muffle a moan on her neck, she pressed her lips to his ear.

"Will I?" she asked while fiddling with the clasp of her bra. The soft click when she opened it made Charlie look up immediately.

Sharon threw the garment behind her. But then, in contrast to this nonchalant gesture, she placed a hand between her breasts, which had the same scaly scars as the majority of her body. As a sigh threatened to escape her lips, Charlie kissed them with passionate intensity. Then he leaned back, allowing himself to look at her thoroughly.

"What have we here?" he asked shortly thereafter. "This looks kind of familiar."

Smiling, the wizard touched her heart. Literally and figuratively.

"Not even this birthmark seemed suspicious to me back then…" he murmured.

Sharon put her hand on his own, led it to her lips and kissed his knuckles.

"I was a very convincing dragon, wasn't I?"

"Indeed you were."

With a deep breath, Charlie leaned forward, kissed and sucked on the birthmark that had once inspired him to the name Inimă. Then he turned his attention to her buds, which awaited him dark and pointed. Like strawberries that hid a sweetness that resonated in the breathless noises of his witch.

Placidly, Charlie got to know the shape of her breasts and the taste of her skin, while Sharon enjoyed his attention with closed eyes. The sounds of deep breaths mingled with those of pleasure.

"Oh… Char…"

It was that first moan that flipped some kind of switch in the wizard. His response was to let go of her chest, grab her body and turn them both with outrageous ease. Sharon gasped in surprise when the mattress pressed itself so unexpectedly into her back. In the next second, his mouth crashed down on hers and smothered that sound. Her arms wrapped around his neck. For the moment she would grant him the dominant role.

It seemed as if they wanted to share a kiss for every freckle on his skin. And he had a countless number of them. At the same time, the pair familiarised themselves with each other's bodies, as if they were the map of a previously unexplored terrain. Scars were canyons. Muscles and breasts were mountains. And their lips were the traveling explorers.

It wasn't long before Charlie's set off on a voyage of discovery to lower regions. Kiss - bellybutton. Kiss - left hip. Kiss - right hip. Kiss - panties. Sharon held her breath.

Charlie inhaled the natural scent of her femininity. With one finger he slipped under the fabric and let it flick back onto her skin. He waited until they had made eye contact.

"Hard or soft?" he asked huskily, caressing her thighs. "Fast or slow?"

The witch suppressed a whimper. This view and his questions about how she liked to be eaten out heightened her arousal immeasurably.

"Hard… and slow…" she replied and felt her blood rush as he stripped off her last piece of clothing with a confident smile. Her answer had also served as her consent.

Calloused hands grabbed her bottom, kneaded it with relish and finally pulled her to his face. Taking a deep breath, Sharon sank into the pillows. Completely indulged in his caresses, which followed her instructions.

 _Fuck._ Her mind was soon incapable of much more. _Fuck. Fuck. Fuck._

Charlie Weasley had to be part dragon as well. There was no other way to explain how he could so effortlessly light a fire inside of her with his mouth. He was almost there. Where she needed him.

"L-left… _Oh, fuck, right there!_ "

His hands gripped her a little tighter at this unexpected, sensual exclamation of pure lust. Conscientiously, he followed her hint. At the same time he paid attention to the pressure her hand applied to his head. So far, he was still learning about her erogenous spots and reactions - but one day he would be an expert.

Sharon's breath faltered. Apart from his tongue, the burn scars on his hands provided a completely new type of stimulation. It was much more arousing than in her imagination, to which she had masturbated after her return.

A dark look across her womanhood revealed that Charlie hadn't missed this reaction. Carefully he began to suck, pushed a finger into her and simultaneously stroked her inner thighs. As if she was an instrument that he learned to play in record time.

After a while, Sharon felt it. The announcement of her climax. When her breathing stopped and a certain tension entered her, the dragon keeper intensified his actions and added an extra finger. That's all it took.

The breath that had been held captive by the witch found its way back to freedom as warm waves swept through her womb and from there into her legs. Triumphantly, Charlie watched this earthquake, for which he bore the responsibility, and continued his caresses until it had come to an end. Then he slowly kissed the same way back up that he had travelled before. The explorer had finished his voyage of discovery with flying colours.

"Damn…" Sharon said, wiping her forehead. "You are good."

Chuckling, he kissed her neck and then the place that made her giggle. The pride over his success was evident.

With nothing but warmth, Charlie watched as she gazed at the spots where his chest hair couldn't grow anymore due to certain scars. Fingertips traced the dark, long healed lines like a quill.

When the wizard leaned forward for another kiss, she pressed her hand against the middle of his chest. Confused, he looked at her. His eyes asked if he had done something wrong. And this although the complete opposite was actually the case.

"Roll over…" Sharon said in a lustful voice. "My turn…"

Slightly taken by surprise, Charlie took a stagnant breath before he willingly let himself fall to the side. Almost immediately she was above him - bloody beautiful and bloody aroused.

Warm breath danced from her lips and blew over his skin while she explored his body with gossamer kisses - sometimes no more than a tickle. It was obvious that the dragon keeper was not used to merely sitting back and lingering in the passive role. This didn't correspond to his nature. That's why his hands were constantly searching for sensitive spots on her body that he could pleasure. At least until the witch arrived at a place that made him fall into a state of tense rigidity.

Sharon planted a smile on the reddish hairline just below his navel, following it to her actual destination. Charlie's masculinity stretched the fabric of his boxers. Purposefully, she grabbed them like a gift that was just waiting to be unwrapped.

After he was sufficiently exposed, Sharon had to swallow automatically. Her core, swollen and begging, pulsed with accumulated desire. She had never known that her penchant for freckles, which she had only discovered through him, would trigger such a reaction within her. But she would definitely not complain.

Smiling, she sought his expectant eyes.

"Have you ever heard of the phrase 'to have a dragon in one's pants'?"

Charlie couldn't prevent the surprised, head-throwing laughter that escaped his lips. A sound, which quickly died down, however, when suddenly warmth and moisture wrapped around his length. Breathing heavily, he looked down and encountered a gaze as dark and green as a shady forest.

Sharon smiled on the inside. With utmost concentration she caressed him, added her hand and listened to the sounds he made. She had dreamed of having her way with him in this manner. The reality was even better.

A touch on her face made the witch look up. Tenderly, he stroked a long strand of hair behind her ear. Merlin. The way he gazed at her. This affection coupled with unmistakable lust and a love that made her knees go soft.

Self-assured, Sharon kept eye contact and could tell by the way his pupils widened that it had been the right decision. Carefully, she searched with her tongue for the band under his tip - his frenulum. And the groaning from deep within his chest that this small action elicited made her feel as if the insides of her lower body were melting away.

"Oh fu…" Charlie tensed his body. "S-stop… Hah… Please, my heart…"

With a slight rush he stroked her temple. As soon as she had sufficiently withdrawn, he pulled her up, turned both of their bodies and brought his into the dominant position again. Wetting her lips, Sharon relaxed into the mattress like a surrendering prey.

"My heart?" she repeated. "That sounds wonderful…"

Still deeply affected by her previous action, the wizard didn't answer directly but kissed her - hard and devotedly. When she pressed herself against him, forming a hollow back, his calloused hand slipped into the resulting gap to hold her there. Sharon bent one leg and groaned against him as a friction between their most sensitive body parts occurred. She could not remember ever having shared such an intimate, mind-blowing kiss with someone before.

With unwieldy movements Charlie removed his last, now very loosely attached garment and kicked it off his feet.

"Merlin…" he muttered afterwards. "You are breathtaking."

When his legs sought a good position - eager to demonstrate his feelings to her in one of the most intimate ways on earth - Sharon pressed her lips to his ear. Her tongue traced the auricle.

"Let me ride you," she whispered. " _Please…_ "

The instant groan that followed her words was more than she had dared to hope for. Momentarily, the wizard buried his face in her hair, which smelled freshly washed like orange blossoms.

"I think you will…" he started and rolled their bodies so she was on top. "…drive me out of my mind one day."

Eyes sparkling with joy, she rubbed her groin against his hardness in a teasing way - moistening him with her wet lust. His ensuing tension made veins on his temples stand out.

"Haven't I done that already?"

"Damn it, Sharon…" Charlie gasped with pleading eyes. "You're torturing me here."

Upon this confession, the witch raised an eyebrow and tapped his chest.

"Hey, _you_ wanted somebody with fire, if I remember correctly. That's something I can offer, not only as a dragon."

And with those words in the air, Sharon brought their two central points together. As she sank down, Charlie stabilised her at her hips, breathing intermittently with arousal until she had fully engulfed him.

The witch closed her eyes. She hadn't been stretched that way for a long time. It took a moment for her insides to fully accept and welcome the visit. Only then did she begin to move at a slow, strong pace.

Charlie threw his head back into the pillows with a curse as her hips performed a circular motion. Ever since her ambiguous statement about her dominant broom-flying style, the idea of her naked self riding him had never left his mind. And now this dream was coming true.

Skilfully he guided her hips and thrust towards her, which drew a joyful whimper from the witch. It was a sound that caught him off guard so much that he had to pause for a moment to keep his arousal in check. This couldn't be happening. Normally he had a lot more control over his body. On the other hand, he could not remember ever having desired a woman as much as he did right now.

"Damn… Char…" Sharon sighed. Her fingernails left little crescents. "You feel so… _fucking good…_ "

Her compliment provoked a fierce growl from the wizard, which she received directly. It was somewhat animalistic and deeply arousing.

"If anyone feels good, it's you," he replied, kneading her bum with pleasure.

Smiling, Sharon changed her body's centre of gravity to whisper a thank you on his lips. In doing so, the length of her hair became a problem. With almost annoying precision, it hit Charlie's face and slipped between their lips while kissing.

"Oh, sorry," the witch laughed before hastily braiding her hair. It wouldn't last long without a scrunchie, but she wasn't aiming for a permanent hairdo anyway.

With a smile, the wizard stroked her breasts while she performed this rehearsed activity. The buds swelled under his touch. When he proceeded to draw circles around her heart-shaped birthmark, he felt her shudder and made a mental note of this information for future lovemaking.

"There," Sharon finally grinned and let the braid fall over her shoulder. "Where were we?"

When asked this question, Charlie squinted his eyes slightly before grabbing her hips and thrusting up hard. Immediately, the witch supported herself with her hands.

"Now… I remember…" she gasped and they both shared a laugh.

Slowly they searched for a common rhythm like in a dance, which followed the oldest background music in the world.

At some point, Sharon felt her arms getting heavier and leaned back for relief to prop them up there. This allowed the wizard a better view of her breasts, which rose and fell with quick breaths. Underneath was her belly, which moved with them.

Charlie's lips formed a barely audible "Merlin.", but apparently not quiet enough. The witch put her chin down so she could look at him. So unmistakably cheerful and self-confident that this increased her attractiveness - if this was even possible.

She truly resembled a female dragon that had chosen a male during the mating season to become her other half. Hardly anyone knew this, but among many dragon species, it was the female that carried out the partner search - with a lot of finesse and passion.

Sharon unsuccessfully blew a long strand of hair from her face, which had escaped her braid. With a gentle hand movement he stroked it behind her ear as he had done before.

"My dragon witch…"

The term of endearment made her laugh. Her body vibrated. Smirking, Charlie dampened his thumb with his tongue before pressing it to the spot above the junction between them. Slowly, to the rhythm of their shared thrusts, he let it circle. The witch's mouth opened for a faltering, lip-trembling whimper.

Adjusting her arms, she moved her weight forward again and their movements increased in speed. Became more hectic, more untamed.

Sharon felt the longed-for heat in the distance. Actually close, but still too far away. Charlie caught the impatience and pleading in her gaze - and held her a little tighter.

"That's it, my heart." Sweat on his forehead. "I am yours - _forever._ "

And his encouraging words, the promise of a joint future, lured the heat closer. When the witch's inner walls finally began to contract in waves, Charlie lifted his upper body to bring them both to eye level. To steal another kiss from her.

" _Charles…_ " Sharon gasped audibly. His name spoken in this way - bloody hell, his real name by all the magic - was what untied the last knot.

Moaning, the wizard buried his face in the crook of her neck and released his heat inside of her. Slowly both of them rode out their passion until it seemed like there was nothing left because the respective other had received everything.

Their heartbeats gradually calmed down. At some point Charlie brushed a sweaty strand of hair aside and kissed her temple. Carefully, he bedded her back on the mattress, leaving them lying on the bed the wrong way round. The wizard locked her head between his arms. Robust and protective like walls.

In this position - still deeply connected - they just looked at each other. No further words were needed. They had not required them even before, when the witch had still been a dragon.

Instead, Charlie silently formed the three words, which had already been said as often as there were stars in the firmament, in the most diverse variations. And Sharon replied to them in the same way.

_I love you._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Or was it: I am tired? That was great? Too many options. :´D
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I wish you a great weekend! :)


	12. A happy ending

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Friday! Are you ready for the last chapter? Enjoy! :)
> 
> Once more I would like to thank [moonfairy13](https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonfairy13/pseuds/moonfairy13) for all her help and support. She has even written an amazing bonus scene for Sharon and Charlie's story. It's [chapter 10](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24211513/chapters/64515766) in her "Moonfairy's Scenes and Drabbles" collection. I recommend you all of her stories. 😊

Sharon didn't know if there really was such a thing as a happy ending. But when she woke up one morning to the roar of dragons and a calloused, caressing hand on her stomach, she thought she might have reached that point. Yet the way there hadn't been easy.

The witch often had to sigh when she reminisced about the early days of her relationship with Charlie and the many ups and downs of it. Despite the occasional portkey, the distance between them - almost two thousand kilometres as the crow flies - had been hard to bear. Some nights after another goodbye, Sharon had cried herself to sleep because of her longing. It took a whole year before her residence and the management of the clinic - which was still in her possession today - had found a way into reliable hands.

In Romania, the two of them had eventually moved into a larger hut together, which had created another hurdle in their relationship. Like any couple, they faced smaller and larger quarrels over time. Did the problem lie with her - "We share the bathroom! So why should I of all people be the one responsible for the clogging?!" "Oh, excuse me! I forgot that I sometimes sprout long dark hair!" - or with him - "Night shift or not: Next time you fall into bed in the early morning and I land on the floor, you sleep on the couch!"

No matter how you put it, love was not only harmony, but also hard work. Something worth putting your heart and soul into.

Sharon felt the hand on her stomach drawing circles and blinked. Sun rays broke through the gaps in the window blinds like threads of light - the announcement of a new, eventful day.

"Hmm…" She yawned and rubbed a sleepy eye. "What time is it?"

The question had barely left her lips when her wand on the nightstand vibrated and hummed. With a whining sound, Sharon buried her face in the pillow. Behind her, she could hear and feel her partner's deep laugh.

"Did you sleep well?"

"…back pains."

Charlie sighed into her hair after this frequently heard answer. His hand on her belly found its way to that spot below her ribs. As if rehearsed, his thumb kneaded the right pressure points until Sharon exhaled in relief and sank even deeper into the mattress.

"Today's gonna be a long day," the dragon keeper murmured in her ear. "Are you sure that-"

"We've already talked about this. Not even a raging dragon will keep me from coming the whole way along today."

With a faint groan, the witch turned from her side position onto her back. Immediately an unmistakable bulge appeared, as if the bed represented a landscape to which a hill had been added.

"Oh." A kick inside her. "Apparently, someone else has woken up just now."

With a warmth on his face that could have defied even the strongest ice spell, Charlie pulled the blanket away and lifted her nightgown to kiss her belly. His daily morning ritual.

In their early forties, their third child had not been planned - these Weasley sperm possessed an incredible assertiveness even at one forgotten contraceptive spell - but the two could hardly be any happier.

Sharon's eyes fell on the crib next to the bed, in which a new life would soon be sleeping. Until now, only the teddy bear that had once torn the witch away as a portkey rested in it - the witness of the most important first kiss of her life. Today, despite its age, the stuffed animal looked much better than in the beginning. Thorough wash cycles and Charlie's sewing skills had taken care of that.

"Shall I go and wake up the rest of the gang?" the wizard asked and put his ear down as if their baby wanted to tell him a secret. Sharon shook her head.

"Let's let them sleep a little longer," she replied, stroking his hair. It shone as red as ever, while hers already featured silver lines. "Especially Ella. Merlin knows that the time difference will bother her. I used to hate that. Everyone was so full of energy while I almost fell face-first into my food."

Charlie chuckled softly at the image. Many years ago their daughter had decided that she wanted to attend the same school as her mother. At least since Aaron had once stated at a joint dinner with the team that she was a born Thunderbird - and apparently that sounded much more appealing than lion, badger, eagle or snake.

A moment of silence followed, during which the couple dwelt on their thoughts.

"Have you got the times in mind?" Sharon asked and looked at the two portkeys on the dresser that had been delivered to them yesterday. A watering can and a coat hanger.

Lost in thought, the wizard nodded and placed more kisses on her round belly.

"Mm-hm… London activates at 11 am and Boston at 6 pm."

"They're both set from Romanian time, love," the witch reminded him. "Remember, we must travel with the second one at 4 pm London time."

Charlie muffled a sigh on her skin, spreading warmth by doing so. His beard stubble scratched slightly.

"Why in Merlin's name do both schools share the same arrival day?" he murmured. "Would one day's difference have hurt so much?"

Sharon added her second hand and then massaged his scalp with both. In a state of complete relaxation, Charlie closed his eyes. At the moment everything was perfect. The stress wouldn't set in for a few more hours.

"We can do this," she reassured him, putting on a meaningful grin. "Just think of all the things we can do as soon as we're alone."

"Hmm…" The dragon keeper hummed contentedly. "Are you seducing me right now, Mrs. Apley-Weasley?"

"That could very well be the case."

Charlie shifted his weight to one arm and leaned forward to kiss her. It wasn't like before, when that sort of contact - regardless of the consequences - had resulted in flames. Today, their kisses resembled a controlled campfire, where one felt warm and safe.

However, this didn't mean that the passion had become a stranger to them. In fact, both of them thought that after today they would enjoy one last, intimate holiday before the birth. At the place where Charlie had once proposed to her - in Idaho.

The American reservation was, as expected, a dreamlike piece of earth, which could not keep up with the Romanian one in terms of size, but possessed a much clearer structure.

Back then, at Charlie's request, the head of the reserve, who - as luck would have it - happened to be a long-time friend of Ciprian's, had granted them access to an empty enclosure. The location where Sharon had dared to take on her dragon form for the first time in an eternity. It had been a moment of pure nostalgia.

Sharon smiled as she remembered how she had fulfilled a secret childhood dream of her wizard - a flight on a dragon. Together they had sailed through the air. With Charlie's joyful exclamations as the background music, that could drown out even the strongest wind.

In fact, he had felt so much adrenaline and happiness that immediately after her retransformation he had pulled her into a field of tall grass and wild flowers to love her there. Passionate and beaming.

"Remind me to suggest that we do this sort of thing more often if it results in something like this," had been Sharon's amused reaction to this attack. With a sated sigh, she had put an arm over her eyes to escape the blinding sun. At least until a light weight was placed on her bare chest.

"Hm? What…"

A ring on her birthmark and tension in Charlie's body. Unfounded nervousness.

"Sharon Kimberly Apley, would you do me the honour of-" he had started, unable to finish his proposal. Because the witch had pounced on him. With as many yes-words on her lips as there were freckles on his skin. Overjoyed, the two of them had rolled through the grass laughing and kissing before they had searched with a slight hurry for the ring that had fallen to the ground somewhere.

The memory faded. Sharon looked at said piece of jewelry while her fingers slipped through red strands. Then as now, thanks to a little spell, the ring shone as white gold as it did on the first day. Two tiny stones adorned it in honour of her two forms. Pearl like her dragon scales and emerald like her eyes.

Charlie sighed after a while as the warmth and caresses threatened to make him sleepy again.

"Shall we?" he asked and helped her up at her nod. Another kick inside her belly created a bulge on which the wizard reflexively placed a hand. Sharon smiled. So much energy in such a small body.

"Yes, let's do this."

King's Cross resembled an anthill. From all directions, people were streaming in, having either arrived from somewhere or readying themselves to leave. When Sharon and her family reached the magical passage to the platform 9 3/4, she automatically pulled a face. The witch was no fan of running into enchanted walls. Especially not now while she carried another life inside of her. Somehow the paranoia lurked in her mind that the spell could dissolve at the exact second she wanted to walk through the wall.

Charlie noticed her expression and acted accordingly.

"You go first, Lucas," he said and their son nodded affirmatively. With his broad, freckled face, he was the spitting image of his father. At least Sharon's hair colour had prevailed in the DNA bingo.

"Look - backwards," he grinned and ran - quite the daring Gryffindor - with his back pressed against his luggage cart.

As soon as he had disappeared into nothingness, Sharon shook her head disapprovingly. A warm, robust arm wrapped around her waist. Charlie pressed a soothing kiss on her temple.

"What an idiot. One of these days he'll break his neck," the daughter of the two grumbled and rolled her eyes - just like her mother used to do it.

Unlike her older brother, Ella had inherited the red Weasley hair. She left it down most of the time, but today it fell over her shoulders in the form of two braided plaits. Between them the dark eyes of Bawler - a fat toad with countless warts - peeked out.

Initially, the goal of the shopping spree a few weeks ago had been to buy their daughter an owl. A sturdy, young bird who could easily carry her letters to the international mail forwarding office in New York. But then a roaring croak on entering the shop had nipped this idea in the bud. 

Smiling, Sharon watched how Ella stroked the hilly, wart-covered skin of her toad with utmost caution. She had a hunch as to why her daughter had chosen this animal. After all, there was someone she had looked up to since her early childhood - Pedro and Stefanu's son Theo.

The now young man had often played babysitter for the children when Sharon and Charlie were in need of an evening for themselves. Since his early years he loved - despite the existence of real magic - to perform small muggle magic shows. And Ella's favourite trick to this day was the one in which he made his toad disappear and reappear in a top hat.

Charlie put one hand on the shoulder of each of his two favourite witches.

"Let's go together," he said. On three, they ran and crossed the magical passageway. Immediately, the atmosphere changed. A different kind of noise than before set in. Numerous witches and wizards of different ages crowded around the platform.

As magnificent as on the first day, the Hogwarts Express waited to transport the school-aged generations of the magical society to the Scottish realms in its carriages.

"No. Still not a fan of it," Sharon decided and looked critically at the wall behind her. Who had decided on this? Hadn't another kind of magic worked just as well?

"We have enough years ahead of us to convince you otherwise," Charlie said with a wink before they joined Lucas, who was impatiently waiting for them.

It was not long until the group spotted the rest of their large family. The red hair worked like a lighthouse for a ship on the open sea. Joyful cries, greetings and hearty embraces were exchanged.

"Good to see you," Bill said, patting Charlie on the back. At the same time, Fleur pressed a kiss on each of Sharon's cheeks.

"The photos don't do you justice, ma chère. The pregnancy makes you glow."

Before Sharon could respond to this compliment, another person showed up and immediately pulled her into her arms. A person she had expected to see only later at The Burrow. Her mother-in-law.

"Oh, dear, look at you," Molly sighed after her greeting and took the witch's face in her hands. "You look exhausted. Are you eating enough?"

"A moment ago I was glowing," Sharon muttered and then said a little louder, "Don't worry. Your son is fattening me up as if I were a pregnant dragon and not a human."

Both shared a laugh. No passer-by who had been able to observe the two women during this exchange would have ever suspected that their relationship had started off on a bumpy ride.

Sharon still remembered the first family dinner when Charlie had officially introduced her to everyone as his witch. Fortunately, the reactions had been positive throughout. Molly, in particular, had responded euphorically upon hearing that her second oldest, whom she had been so worried about - a life away from home, the work with dragons and being a bachelor on top of that - had finally found his other half.

But in the middle of dinner, Sharon had made a crucial mistake. When it was revealed that she was unable to meet the most important criterion on Molly's list of the perfect daughter-in-law - bringing her son home.

It was Ginny who had set the ball rolling.

"So you want to move in together. Does that mean you're gonna apply to the reservation in Wales?"

The couple had shared a confused look because of this misunderstanding.

"Sorry to disappoint you, sis."

"I'll move to Romania and support the reserve as a healer."

First silence. Then a shattering sound. Molly had dropped her glass and showed a look of absolute horror. And Sharon's only thought at that moment had been: _Fuck_. 

But that lay far in the past. Because within a very short time, the family's matriarch had discovered that she was now seeing her son much more often than she had before. He had always made it home for Christmas, but suddenly he was no longer missing when other festivities were on the agenda. His acceptances were often even among the first.

"All you have to do is book the portkeys in time and remind your husband to schedule his work shifts accordingly," Sharon had explained on inquiry. "I love your son with all my heart, but he's the perfect example of a workaholic. Totally committed when it comes to his dragons. No wonder he's rarely made it here in the past."

It was at this exact moment that Molly had finally taken the younger witch into her heart and since then had grown fonder of her with every encounter.

Charlie sidestepped one or two bystanders - the crowded platform made family gatherings a little problematic - and took his mother in his arms. Grinning, he proved his strength by lifting her up a bit.

"Charles Weasley, put me down this instant so I can greet my grandchildren," Molly rebuked affectionately. At the mention of his birth name, her son did not even bat an eyelid - the result of more than ten years of his wife calling him that almost daily. Especially in situations whose details would have made a lot of people blush.

Lucas and Ella were just greeting their grandmother with kisses on her cheeks when the next family members joined them. Ginny Potter threw herself into Charlie's arms. It was at moments like these that one could tell which of her brothers ranked among her favourites.

"Harry and James are just having a private conversation," the witch said shortly afterwards and nodded in their direction. "He almost jumped straight into the train when we arrived. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he had some coffee with an invigoration draught."

"Ah, the stress of an auror. Does your husband wish to escape and take refuge with Minerva?"

The heads of some family members turned to the source of the new voice. Fred Weasley wore a wide grin. His brother beside him an identical one. Sharon, who saw the twins only sporadically like the rest, would have had a hard time telling the two apart had it not been for George's magical ear imitation. Today it flashed in Gryffindor colours.

"Very funny," Ginny replied, punching Fred in the shoulder. "And your wives? Are they already sitting in a carriage?"

Sharon laughed softly and felt her husband's arms wrapping around her. His hands glided over her stomach. That was something he definitely couldn't get enough of. It was purely instinctive. Almost as if he were a dragon guarding his nest.

"Angelina is at Quidditch training and Hermione has been given an important assignment by the Ministry," George replied, adding after a pause that their rascals were already turning the Hogwarts Express upside down. Ron and Luna looked after the youngest.

"Gee, then I hope the train lasts until Hogwarts," Sharon joked, drawing attention to herself. Grinning, the twins sailed around their sister, whose hair they fearlessly tousled, and headed for their sister-in-law.

"How is the dragon egg?"

"Almost hatching time, isn't it?"

In response to these two questions, Sharon rolled her eyes. Her animagus power aside, her round belly with the scaly pattern did the rest. The twins had once looked at her in the summer of her first pregnancy and decided unanimously to rename her belly an egg.

"Two months left," Charlie replied, stroking the roundness. With an unmistakable joy that he wanted to share with the whole world. A sudden kick from inside against his hands took Sharon's breath away.

"Merlin, every time," she muttered. "Can you explain to your son that an occasional nap is a good thing? My stomach's not a Quidditch field."

Chuckling, the dragon keeper kissed her cheek. In the background, Sharon overheard Percy and Oliver joining their group. The two had adopted a boy - Simon - some years ago, who, like many other children, had been orphaned by the terrible events of the past.

The bright Ravenclaw asked for permission to touch Sharon's belly and was interested in the potion she had to take during her pregnancy to suppress her animagus power. One vial every month at the same hour.

"Tastes gross. As if all the flavours of Bertie Bott's beans got mixed together," Sharon described and laughed as her listeners grimaced. Behind her, she could feel her husband shaking in disgust.

"I tried it once and can confirm it."

Further small talk between different people ensued until it was time for the remaining children to find a seat on the train. Waving, Lucas leaned out of the window of a middle carriage. His parents and sister returned the gesture. Each time the farewell turned out to be bittersweet.

"So…" Charlie said, once the Hogwarts Express had departed and was no longer in sight. "…next stop The Burrow and then Boston."

A few hours later Sharon and Charlie lay finally in their holiday bed. Exhaling. Familiar dragon cries reached their ears like an old friend calling their names. A glance at the clock revealed that they hadn't even been on their feet for half a day and yet it felt so much longer. Days of travel drained one's energy.

An hour ago, they had sent their daughter and her luggage into her first year of school. In Boston existed an underground harbour where the students of Ilvermorny gathered to take a ship to Mount Greylock. When it had set its sapphire blue sails, Sharon had almost burst into tears of nostalgia. Even now she couldn't help but swallow because of the many memories that this sight had evoked in her. Their daughter would love it there.

"I hope she'll sleep a little more in her cabin. At least for a few minutes," Sharon murmured with her eyes closed and heard her husband laughing beside her.

"Did you see her face? Not a chance. She'll absorb it all and collapse into bed tonight." He rolled over to her. His hand brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "How are you?"

The witch's eyelids lifted with a flutter. There was care in his voice, but also something else that was reserved for her alone.

"Hm… Good. Could be better."

"Could it?"

Their smiling mouths joined for a kiss. Eagerly, they enjoyed these first moments of complete privacy - minus the little one, who rested under her heart and reacted with movements to the increased heartbeat of his mother.

"Do you have any idea how bloody stunning you looked today?" Charlie whispered. "Even more than usual? People could barely keep their hands off you."

"Huh, people? Wasn't that mostly one person?"

Sharon giggled when her husband kissed his favourite spot under her ear. Romanian sentences with erotic content slipped from his lips. Today the witch was able to react to them thanks to several years of language training, but at the very beginning her cluelessness had led to amusing moments in the bedroom. Charlie teased her to this day, how he had once managed to get her off with the comment: "I think I'm getting a cramp in my leg."

More kisses were shared before Sharon carefully turned to the side so that he could lay down behind her. A few little spells made the barrier of clothing layers between them disappear. This position was tight, but one of those that worked best at the moment.

Sharon sighed softly as he sank into her and his hand danced over her belly as it had done so often before. He never came into contact with her breasts, although the witch knew how much he was itching to stroke them in their enlarged state. But they had simply become too sensitive in the last few months. And not only that. The increased blood circulation in her lower body meant that she reached her climax much more quickly than she normally did. As if she had traded an old broom for the newest one on the market. But Charlie knew how to consider her physical changes during intimate moments of affection.

"No… Not yet…" he mumbled after a while when her breathing changed. His movements stopped abruptly. "Time… my heart… We have… time…"

Sharon made a sound that was half grumbling, half whimpering. This reaction caused Charlie to laugh - a mistake. Because the vibrations combined with the tightness were enough to throw off his plans. Her neck and the hair lying there heated up as a deep, satisfied groan broke out of him - and a frustrated curse once he was done.

"Mmm, I thought we had time?" Sharon teased and gasped as his hand slipped from her belly to her most sensitive spot. The hoped-for result followed after a few seconds.

While the witch's insides quaked, kisses rained down on her cheek, neck and shoulder. By now the couple had made love to each other countless times in their lives. Sometimes wild, sometimes relaxed. Sometimes happy, sometimes sad. Sometimes pregnant, sometimes not. Their bodies were familiar paths that the two knew by heart and yet they always revisited them with joy.

"How are you?" the wizard repeated his question and Sharon leaned her head so that she could breathe a "Perfect." on his lips.

After a cleansing spell and a trip to the toilet, the couple found back to bed despite the early hour. Charlie's head hadn't even touched the pillow for a minute when she heard his deep breaths, which indicated a good sleep.

Sharon stretched briefly. A nap sounded really tempting after the last hours. With a sigh, she bedded herself in a way that allowed her to see her husband's face. His freckles had diminished with age, but their number was still enormous.

The witch sought his hand and put her smaller one on top.

_Once upon a time, there was a witch who could transform into a dragon. She met a dragon keeper who showed her a world of wonders. The two fell in love, had babies and lived happily ever after._

Sharon's lips rose to a smile at this thought.

_Yep. That definitely sounds like a happy ending._

**THE END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *happy/sad sigh*
> 
> I can't believe it's over. It was nice to post a chapter every Friday. xD
> 
> If you have read till the end I would love to hear your thoughts in any language you prefer. I am sure the many online translators out there will help me. 😄
> 
> Apart from that, I wish you a great day/night wherever you are. I hope this story put a smile on your face. 😊💛


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